Updated
Updated · AOL · Aug 21
Cardiologists Flag 8 Heart Attack Signs in Women as 1 in 5 Female Deaths Stem From Heart Disease
Updated
Updated · AOL · Aug 21

Cardiologists Flag 8 Heart Attack Signs in Women as 1 in 5 Female Deaths Stem From Heart Disease

3 articles · Updated · AOL · Aug 21

Summary

  • Eight symptoms cardiologists say women should watch for include extreme fatigue, indigestion, jaw or back pain, heartburn, shortness of breath, left arm pain, nausea and chest pressure.
  • Heart disease causes about 1 in 5 female deaths in the United States, and doctors say women often delay treatment because symptoms can seem mild, unfamiliar or easy to dismiss.
  • Chest discomfort is still the most common heart-attack symptom in both sexes, but women more often describe pressure, tightness or squeezing rather than dramatic chest pain.
  • Doctors say a heart attack happens when blood flow to the heart is blocked—often after plaque rupture—and urge women to call 911 immediately, because "time is muscle."

Insights

If standard hospital tests often miss female heart attacks, how can women ensure they survive the emergency room?
Why might the seemingly normal fatigue of motherhood secretly mask a deadly cardiac emergency years later?
Could the everyday exhaustion you dismiss as stress actually be a silent killer hiding in plain sight?