TWO women die needlessly every day from heart attacks because they do not receive equal treatment to men, experts have warned.
People view heart disease as a man’s illness, meaning women don’t receive the same standard of care and are more likely than men to be misdiagnosed.
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This “heart attack gender gap” has contributed to an estimated 8,000 plus women dying in England and Wales over a ten-year period from 2003-2013, the British Heart Foundation (BHF) said.
In a new briefing, Bias and Biology: How the gender gap in heart disease is costing women’s lives, the charity emphasised that there is a common perception that heart attack is a man’s disease.
Despite this, twice as many women die from coronary heart disease – the underlying cause of most heart attacks – than breast cancer in the UK, according to the BHF.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, consultant cardiologist and BHF associate medical director, said the charity was not pointing a finger at any individual or organisation, but highlighting a “deeply entrenched issue which manifests itself in a series of unconscious biases”.
Dying needlessly
She said: “Heart attacks have never been more treatable.
“Yet women are dying needlessly because heart attacks are often seen as a man’s disease, and women don’t receive the same standard of treatment as men.
“The studies detailed in this briefing have revealed inequalities at every stage of a woman’s medical journey.
“The reasons for this are complex to dissect. Together, we must change this.”
Standard of care
About 35,000 women are admitted to hospital following a heart attack in the UK each year – an average of 98 women a day, BHF said.
A BHF-funded study at the University of Leeds estimated that more than 8,200 heart attack deaths in women in England and Wales could have been prevented if they had received the same standard of care as men – the equivalent of two a day.
And research has shown women are 50 per cent more likely than men to receive a wrong initial diagnosis when they are having a heart attack, increasing their risk of death.
Women also take longer on average to arrive at the hospital after the onset of symptoms than men, a global review found.
Global issue
And a BHF-funded study showed that women were 2.7 per cent less likely to be prescribed statins and 7.4 per cent less likely to be prescribed beta blockers when leaving hospital.
Risk factors for heart attack are also more serious for women – high blood pressure increases women’s risk 80 per cent more, and type 2 diabetes increases women’s risk 50 per cent more.
The BHF said their counterparts in the US and Canada have found a similar picture from the evidence.
Symptoms of heart attack in men and women
These are the signs the British Heart Foundation is calling for everyone to be more aware of:
- Chest pain or discomfort – the most recognised symptom of a heart attack though not always present
- Pain radiating to the arms, neck, jaw, stomach and back can all be symptoms of a heart attack. You may experience pain in just one or all of these places; for some people the pain is severe but for others just uncomfortable
- A feeling of indigestion or reflux type pain – this is often ignored in the hope that it will pass
- Feeling sick, sweaty, breathless or lightheaded with associated chest pain or discomfort
- A general feeling of being unwell or lethargic can also be an indicator of a heart attack when accompanied by chest pain or discomfort
Chris Gale, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Leeds and lead author of some of the studies, said: “This problem is not unique to the UK – studies across the globe have also revealed gender gaps in treatment, suggesting this is a deeply entrenched and complex issue.
“On their own, the differences in care are very small, but when we look at this across the population of the UK, it adds up to a significant loss of life. We can do better.”
It comes after BHF revealed that women are more likely to display “typical” heart attack symptoms than men.
In particular, chest pain was the most common symptom for both men and women, with 93 per cent of both sexes reporting this symptom.
However, more women reported pain radiating down their left arm – with 49 per cent of women and 48 per cent of men showing this sign.
Similarly, more women had pain that radiated to their jaw or back and women were also more likely to experience nausea in addition to chest pain.
In fact less typical symptoms including heartburn, burning and stabbing pains and back pain were more common in men than women.
A heart heart attack is a life-threatening emergency… dial 999 immediately if you suspect someone is having one.
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