According to a report in The New York Times, since 1984 more women than men have died every year of heart diseases, despite it being known as primarily a ‘man’s disease. ‘While the overall coronary death rate has dropped in recent decades, most improvements have been in men, leaving researchers to realise that past studies that focused primarily on men do not always apply to women.

Of the major gender differences that have emerged with heart disease men typically experience excruciating pain in the chest and left arm, while symptoms for women can be more subtle. Women often experience ill-defined pain or tightening in the chest, which can expand into the neck, jaw and shoulders.

Women with chest pain or other symptoms are more likely than men to have clear arteries when tests are performed. The explanation could be a disorder called micro vascular disease, which is a narrowing of the smaller arteres that nourish the heart, but are too tiny to show up on an angiogram. Women with blocked coronary arteries tend to be older than men and to have worse symptoms, including more chest pain and disability. These women are also more likely to have high cholesterold and diabetes, making surgery riskier. Further, women are more likely to develop total heart failure.

Women are less likely than men to have a successful outcom from bypass surgery or balloon procedures for coronary block-ages, likely because women have smaller blood vessels which tend to clog up again more easily.

These findings indicate that the prevention and early detention of heart disease in women s vitally important. “Women who develop heart

failure tolerate it much more poorly than men, and they tolerate heart attacks and by pass surgery more poorly than men,” says Dr. Cari J. Pepine Chief of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Florida.

High blood pressure and cholesterol are almost certainly the causes of micro vascular disease, and it is essential to treat them aggressively in women with chest pain, pepine says. He also urges women to exercise avoid smoking and lost weight if they are too heavy.

Now to help in diagnosis there is non-invasive 3D Angio Cartogram can even detect small tiny blocks both in main arteries as well as in smaller vessels.

According to the Canadian Health Network warning signs of a heart attack for women include.

Heartburn

Nause and/or vomiting

Difficulty breathing

Shortness of breath

Weakness

Anxiety

Sweating

Finally, when experiencing any chest pain or discomfort, women, as well as men, should not to wait till the pain to pass or manage themselves taking sublingual which was prescribed to them long ago with the fear of visiting a doctor. Presently there are so many non invasive options to prevent one self from heart attack and Surgical Intervention Oxymed hospital has so for treated 3000 patients without surgery.