Female Heart Attack By Bobby Gill
Introduction
Heart disease is the #1 cause of death in American women. Heart attacks kill more women every year than the next seven causes combined including cancer. Female heart attack survivors are more likely than male survivors to become disabled with heart failure. Female heart attack patients undergoing angioplasty have a higher risk of death than men, but stenting may improve their outcomes, according to a study reported in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. 60% of female heart attack victims experience the more usual symptoms of a heart attack and 40% experience little or no chest pains at all. The study also found that 43% of the women studied had no “acute chest pain" which is a usual symptom in men. This indicates that female are different from those of men. Another problem with female heart attack is that both doctors and women do not take the symptoms seriously and much time is wasted before action is taken. Another study showed that many women knew something was wrong a month or more before their heart attack. Another statistic shows that
African-American women are the most likely to die after suffering a heart attack and are most often at a younger age than white women. Heart disease is also higher among Mexican-Americans, native Indians, native Hawaiians and some Asian-Americans.
Heart Attack Symptoms in Women
Since in women are frequently different from men, women should learn the specific signs of a female heart attack. These symptoms are:
A. a pressure, fullness, tightness or pain in your chest lasting five minutes or longer
B. constant indigestion-like discomfort
C. chest pain that moves to your shoulders, arms, neck, jaw or back
D. lightheadedness, dizziness, fainting, sweating or a sick stomach
E. unexplained shortness of breath
F. unexplained anxiety, weakness or tiredness, palpitations
G. a cold sweat or paleness
General facts about female heart attack victims
Women have higher rates of depression after their heart attacks. Some female patients give up sex after a heart attack and are too embarrassed to talk to their doctor about it. When no serious complications post-heart attack, most people can safely resume sexual activity after a couple of weeks.
How to get proper attention to a female heart attack
Call or have someone call 911 immediately and state that you might be having a heart attack. Upon arrival, insist they test you for a heart attack. How can you lower your risk of having a heart attack? The American Heart Association states "Some heart attacks are sudden and intense - the 'movie heart attack,' where no one doubts what's happening. But most heart attacks start slowly, with mild pain or discomfort."
Conclusion<
Female can include breathlessness, nausea, exhaustion, jaw pain and upset stomach. Studies have determined that women are less likely to receive beta blockers, ACE inhibitors, and aspirin even though these therapies are known to improve survival chances. Many women under age 55 don't recognize female heart attack signs other than the heavy pressure on the chest and shortness of breath. Women with heart attacks benefit from stenting. Female heart attack patients undergoing angioplasty have a higher risk than men.
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