WOMEN AND HEART DISEASE: UPDATE ON PREVENTION


Shaista Malik, M.D., Ph.D., M.P.H., University of California, Irvine, CA, USA

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading killer of both men and women in the United States. However, compared to men, women have higher rates of morbidity and mortality secondary to cardiovascular disease. Whether these differences are due to excess sex-specific risk factors can be debated. Studies showing excess sex-specific risk for cardiovascular events, in part due to traditional risk factors as well as novel biomarkers, will be reviewed. We will discuss the excess relative risk from diabetes in predicting incidence of cardiovascular events as well as discuss sex-specific differences in lipids. The role of novel biomarkers of coagulation and fibrinolysis and diagnostic testing, such as endothelial function testing, will be discussed. Recent trial evidence also suggests that strategies for primary prevention in women might be different than in men. Future clinical trials need to address the sex-based differences in the prevalence, etiology, and treatment of heart disease in men and women.