Specialties
Women's Cardiovascular Medicine Program
Ways in Which Heart Disease May Affect Women
A variety of cardiac conditions can signal heart disease in women, including:
- Coronary artery disease (myocardial infarction - heart attack; angina - cardiac chest pain; and sudden death)
- Mitral valve prolapse
- Congenital heart diseases (heart disease problems a woman is born with)
- Valvular heart disease (abnormalities of the heart valves)
- Hypertension or stroke (high blood pressure or "brain attack")
- Heart disease during or following pregnancy
- Congestive heart failure
- Chest pain associated with panic or anxiety disorders or depression
- Hypertension (high blood pressure) or hyperlipidemia (high cholesterol) associated with oral contraceptives
- Spasm of the heart arteries (Prinzmetal's Angina) and microvascular angina
All of these conditions are treatable, and with the proper medical management, can be detected early or prevented.