Is it true that a woman's heart "endures" more than a man's? Should women take aspirin to protect against heart attacks? What role do contraceptives play?

The heart of women remains unaffected by the cardioprotective benefits of aspirin, unlike that of men, according to a recent Canadian study. And this is not the only feature of its enigmatic nature female heart, which often seems to "trick" both the fatigue test and the doctors. On the other hand, however, it is accompanied by a reputation for being extremely durable and strong. Finally, what about women's hearts ?

- The female heart has smaller dimensions and less weight than the male.
- The coronary vessels of the female heart have a smaller diameter and a thinner wall.
There are generally no significant anatomical differences. Significant differences, however, are observed in functionality. This is manifested in the behavior of the heart muscle in the face of various pathological conditions, such as hypertension, coronary heart disease, heart failure and various arrhythmias. An important difference is the increased heart rate (beats / minute) of the female heart compared to men, as well as a number of parameters in the female electrocardiogram.

A woman's heart is protected from a heart attack due to estrogen until menopause. Also lower "bad" cholesterol and higher "good".

They have more tightness per minute. They exercise less. They are 3 times more likely to be depressed than men (a risk factor for heart disease). They are more at risk for cardiovascular disease than obesity, diabetes and hypertension. They have more complications due to heart disease (twice as many as men after a heart attack) and a worse prognosis.

The last decade has seen an international decline in the incidence of cardiovascular disease (the leading cause of death in the western world) in the male population, with a parallel increase in the female population.

-Deaths from cardiovascular diseases in the EU and the US: 54% for women and 43% for men.
-Frequency of heart attacks and angina: 60.6 per 10,000 in men and 19 per 10,000 in women.

Men get coronary heart disease and heart attacks more often and earlier, but women are more likely to have heart disease and have a worse progression. Rare but more serious, then, is the "female" coronary heart disease.

Women have less coronary heart disease than men, but when they do, it is more severe than men and has a worse progression. Indeed, the incidence of coronary heart disease and heart attacks is higher in men, especially at younger ages, and this is mainly due to the protective effect that estrogens have on women of childbearing age. But women with acute myocardial infarction have more complications, including bleeding, stroke and death, which are twice as common in women over the age of 50. compared to men of the same age.

As for heart failure, although there do not appear to be differences in its incidence between the sexes, the prognosis in female patients is worse. In general, the effectiveness of different therapeutic techniques, pharmaceutical and invasive, does not differ between the sexes. However, there are differences in the frequency of complications, which are more common in women. In many cases, this can not be explained. Factors that may play a role are the smaller body size and weight of women, the smaller size of their blood vessels, the more advanced age of women with heart disease and the more frequent occurrence of concomitant diseases such as diabetes and hypertension.

Contraceptives for example. It can be justified to take them for 1-3 years, at 20-25. But not after 35. In fact, if the woman smokes, then heart attacks are more common.

Lack of exercise. Women, especially those aged 50-60, do not exercise. They do not even walk.

This is true of angina (chest pain). This very serious condition, which indicates the existence of coronary heart disease, is diagnosed mainly on the basis of the patient's history. In taking the history, men are clear in the description of their symptoms. Women do not have the same stability in their speech and often underestimate the intensity of the pain they felt. The doctor, therefore, needs more time to clear up the condition and come to a diagnosis.

Also, myocardial infarction is more common in women with "atypical" symptoms, such as jaw and neck discomfort . A study conducted six years ago by the US National Institutes of Health, had shown that the symptoms experienced by women are not as expected (pain, nausea, sweating, shortness of breath) and that in many of them, the heart attack never manifests itself with severe chest pain. However, A recent study by Canadian scientists does not record significant differences between the sexes. According to the results of the study, no differences were observed between men and women in terms of the occurrence of chest pain or other typical symptoms of acute coronary syndrome. Women, however, appeared to be more likely to experience discomfort in the neck, jaw and neck, as well as other more "informal" symptoms. Also, as mentioned above, women seem to describe the pain they feel in a different way than men, but nevertheless the most common symptom in them is still chest pain.

Women do not lag behind in tests such as cardiograms and ultrasounds. Where there is a delay is in coronary angiography, ie in invasive diagnostic tests. Women do not decide to have surgery because they fear it will not be successful. And doctors, however, do not insist, especially if they see that the woman is responding to medication. In particular, women respond better to certain lipophilic drugs, such as beta-blockers, because they have 10-15% more body fat than men.

This test is not 100% reliable for anyone. However, it is a fact that if the electrocardiographic fatigue test is 65% reliable in men, in women it is 50%. However, when we do a drug-induced fatigue test, the results are more reliable for both sexes. Less reliable in women is the myocardial scintigraphy, which usually shows false ischemic areas, possibly due to the breasts and the difficulty in imaging the heart.

This test is not 100% reliable for anyone. However, it is a fact that if the electrocardiographic fatigue test is 65% reliable in men, in women it is 50%. However, when we do a drug-induced fatigue test, the results are more reliable for both sexes. Less reliable in women is the myocardial scintigraphy, which usually shows false ischemic areas, possibly due to the breasts and the difficulty in imaging the heart.

The social role of women, often demanding, undoubtedly plays an important role in the incidence of heart disease. The combination of women's longevity and the This social role requires them to care for men suffering from atherosclerotic disease, but leave the woman herself without social and emotional support when she is ill.

It has been shown that the diagnosis and treatment of women with heart disease is lower than that of men. A study by the First Cardiology Clinic of the University of Athens shows that women who have suffered a myocardial infarction, have delayed hospitalization compared to male patients. But even in the field of prevention, the modification of cardiovascular risk factors is more difficult for women, which is responsible for the role of women as persons responsible for the care of the family. It is also known that occupational and psychosocial stress in general increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and in both sexes, a fact that has an increasing role for women whose employment and social status in recent years has been redefined.

The social role of women, often demanding, undoubtedly plays an important role in the incidence of heart disease. The combination of women's longevity and the This social role requires them to care for men suffering from atherosclerotic disease, but leave the woman herself without social and emotional support when she is ill.

It has been shown that the diagnosis and treatment of women with heart disease is lower than that of men. A study by the First Cardiology Clinic of the University of Athens shows that women who have suffered a myocardial infarction, have delayed hospitalization compared to male patients. But even in the field of prevention, the modification of cardiovascular risk factors is more difficult for women, which is responsible for the role of women as persons responsible for the care of the family. It is also known that occupational and psychosocial stress in general increases the risk of cardiovascular disease and in both sexes, a fact that has an increasing role for women whose employment and social status in recent years has been redefined.

Prevention has no gender. Despite the individual differences observed between men and women, the practical advice does not differ between the two sexes: Mediterranean diet, daily physical exercise, cessation smoking, proper regulation of blood pressure, cholesterol and sugar and regular cardiac monitoring, especially after the age of 40, when there is a large increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease.

As long as a woman eats properly and healthily, no pill can replace the adequacy and quality of vitamins provided by food.

When a woman has a serious family history of heart disease, then she may be given hormones, as long as there is no family history of breast or uterine cancer. In these cases, especially if cardiovascular disease has occurred, aspirin is also given.

The reason is that the woman has estrogen hormones, which act similar to aspirin in terms of protection against blood clots. And although one would expect that taking aspirin, in combination with natural protection of estrogen, would "disappear" heart attacks in women, this is not the case. The "echo" of estrogen, however, protects women even after menopause, up to 50-60, for; this and download is not recommended aspirin. It is given, however, after the age of 65 and then it is actually associated with fewer strokes and heart attacks in women.