Women are 2x more likely to die after heart attack than men.
Mortality rate after heart attack:
All-cause mortality
- 30 days after PCI (stenting or angioplasty) – 11.8% of women vs 4.8% of men
- 5 years – 32.1% of women vs 16.9% of men
Why?
- women are older when they have a heart attack (post-menopausal) and have more comorbidities (other conditions) than men. Average age of first heart attack for men in NZ is 67 and women 72 years old.
- women have higher rates of high blood pressure, diabetes and stroke than men. Men more likely to smoke and have coronary artery disease (CAD).
Risk factors:
Risk factors unique to women: premature menopause, pregnancy complications, gestational high blood pressure, premature infant birth.
Common, non-gender risk factors: diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking, family history.
Younger women (under 55 years) – there is an increased risk of death for younger vs older women, if their heart attack is a STEMI (ST-elevated myocardial infarction).
While estrogen is protective, heart attacks have been increasing for younger women in the past 10 years.
Reasons for this:
- women are under-represented in cardiovascular disease research
- women are less aware of their heart disease risk – hence Hearbeats focus on education through public HeartTALKS
- there are unrecognized risk factors for women (see above)
- psychosocial – increased stress, depression, and anxiety affect women more than men.
Source: American Heart Journal, August 2024
