Article Medically Reviewed By:
Sharonne N. Hayes, MD
Director, Mayo Clinic Women's Heart Clinic Associate Professor, Cardiovascular Diseases & Internal Medicine Rochester, MN
Overview
What Is It?
Heart disease starts with a buildup of "plaque" in the blood vessels and, if untreated, can lead to heart attacks. Listen to Your Heart
Many women don't recognize the warning signs of coronary heart disease (CHD) until their health—and their lives—are in jeopardy. According to the American Heart Association, every year more than half a million women die of cardiovascular diseases, which include strokes and diseases of the heart and blood vessels. In each year since 1984, more women have died of cardiovascular diseases than men.
Coronary heart disease, also known as coronary artery disease (CAD) and ischemic heart disease, is a disease of the heart's blood vessels that, if untreated, can cause heart attacks. Like any muscle, the heart needs a constant supply of oxygen and nutrients that are carried to it by the blood in the coronary arteries. When the coronary arteries become narrowed or clogged and cannot supply enough blood to the heart, the result is CHD.
Heart attack and stroke are common results of conditions that restrict or stop the blood flow to the heart or brain. At any given age, men have a greater risk of heart attack than women, but women are only half as likely as men to survive a heart attack and more likely to have a second attack.
Characteristics of Heart Disease
Decreased Blood Flow
Coronary heart disease starts with atherosclerosis, a process in which fatty substances build up inside the walls of blood vessels. Blood components also stick on the surface inside vessel walls making the vessels narrower and eventually "hardened" and less flexible. The buildup, or "plaque," may also break apart, which can further limit blood flow. The buildup and narrowing proceed gradually and result in decreasing blood flow, followed by CHD symptoms.
Symptoms of Heart Disease
When blood flows more slowly at the site of narrowing, it can become "sticky" and eventually form a clot. This blood clot can narrow the opening of the artery even further, which can reduce blood flow to the heart, leading to chest pain, or angina. If blood flow is nearly or completely blocked, a heart attack can occur, leading to the death of muscle cells in the heart. Because the cells cannot be replaced, the result is permanent heart damage. Each year, up to half a million American women suffer heart attacks, an all-too-frequent outcome of CHD.
Heart Disease in Women
Who Is at Risk for CHD?
African-American women are more likely to die of CHD than Caucasian women, perhaps because they are more likely to have more risk factors, including high blood pressure (hypertension), diabetes, obesity and smoking, and are more likely to receive poorer health care than Caucasian women. For example, in 2004, the overall CHD death rate (per 100,000 women)...
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