This is how men and women experience heart attacks differently
Unless you’ve experienced one firsthand, most of our knowledge of heart attacks comes from the movies.
Not only is this unlikely to be a medically accurate depiction, but chances are it also misses a key detail: Men and women broadly experience heart attacks differently.
Twitter user geewheezie has gone viral after tweeting about exactly this. For many, it’s shocking because they didn’t realise women are less likely to experience “common” symptoms of heart attack, like chest pains.
I want to warn women our heart attacks feel different. Last Sunday I had a heart attack. I had a 95% block in my left anterior descending artery. I’m alive because I called 911. I never had chest pain. It wasn’t what you read in pamphlets. I had it off & on for weeks.
— gwheezie (@geewheezie) December 9, 2018
I’m a nurse. I’m an older woman. I had been spending the week helping my neighbor clean out her barn, I thought I strained some muscles. I took Motrin & put a warm pack on my shoulders, I almost died because I didn’t call it chest pain.
— gwheezie (@geewheezie) December 9, 2018
She shares her harrowing experience of a heart attack – not recognising the warning signs and being lucky to have survived. This has really struck a chord with many, as we realise we know far too little about the condition. With this in mind, we spoke to the experts to see how women experience heart attacks differently to men.
The difference in symptoms
Last month was 4 years since I had mine. Thought it was hangover heart burn. Along with nausea and sweating. After mine I learned that heart disease is the leading cause of death for American women. 5x greater than breast cancer.
— shiftywatt (@shiftywatt) December 10, 2018
Cardiologist and associate medical director of cardiovascular diagnostics at Abbott, Gillian Murtagh puts it simply: “Structurally, men and women’s hearts are built the same, but when the heart is in trouble, the outside signs vastly differ by gender.”
This means women have a history of being underdiagnosed and undertreated for heart disease. Murtagh says: “Chest pain is a heart attack symptom for both sexes, but men more than woman experience the effect.”
Women are more likely to experience subtler symptoms like intense fatigue after everyday activities, spontaneous shortness of breath or sweating without exertion, pain in the neck, back or jaw, or an inexplicable cold, clammy feeling.
Cardiac nurse for the British Heart Foundation Philippa Hobson says: “Women tend to brush off symptoms as they may not get the symptoms we associate with heart attacks (like we see on TV with the dramatic clutching of the chest and collapsing on the floor).”
Because the warning signs most commonly experienced by females are “soft”, they less likely to seek medical help.
How women get treated differently
Thank you! I’m a healthy 31 year old, mom of 3. Had a heart attack just over a year ago. I didn’t go to the hospital for over a week- I had such bad upper back pain, also thought it was a pulled muscle. I went to my primary care doctor 4 times before she finally sent me to the ER
— sarah radcliffe (@RadcliffeSarah) December 10, 2018
Hobson thinks there is inherent sexism at play, saying: “Heart attacks are classically thought of as a ‘man’s disease’.” This means we’re more aware of the symptoms that affect men (like chest pains) and women might have a harder time convincing themselves or medical professionals they’re having a heart attack.
“If women do go to hospital their symptoms can be brushed off as being an anxiety/panic attack,” Hobson explains. This means they might not get the treatment they need. “Early detection of a heart attack is vital as heart muscle can be affected quickly and become permanently damaged,” Hobson says. Not only this, but she adds: “If an initial heart attack is missed, there is a much higher risk of having another.”
Because the symptoms of heart attack are less obvious for women, Murtagh thinks biomarkers become even more crucial in diagnosis. She says: “If doctors suspect a heart attack, they can conduct a test to measure troponin proteins in the blood. The proteins are released by the body when the heart muscle has been damaged, such as when a heart attack occurs. The more damage to the heart, the greater the amount of troponin in the blood.”
What women should watch out for
I was lucky, I had no idea what hospital to go to, the female medics who picked me up took me to a hospital that does cardiac caths, i had 4 stents placed an hour after I got to the er. That was Sunday. I was discharged thurs & at my daughters house & back to tweeting.
— gwheezie (@geewheezie) December 9, 2018
For MedicSpot GP Dr Sufian Ali, it’s all about preparation. “Most women do not plan for the event of a heart attack, but getting immediate care is crucial to lessen the damage caused,” he says.
“If you believe you might be in a similar situation where you are experiencing symptoms of a heart attack without chest pain, it is important to immediately dial 999 for an ambulance. Do not attempt to drive yourself or others to the hospital due to the high risk of sudden irregular heartbeats. This is important as only an ambulance will be equipped to revive you if your heart were to suddenly stop beating.”
He also urges women not to downplay their pain, and get help the second they suspect something might be wrong. “Paramedics would rather be called out to find you have made an honest mistake than for it to be too late to save a person’s life,” he says.
The Press Association
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