What factors lead to coronary artery disease and death in women?
The rate of coronary artery disease increases 2 to 3 times after menopause, the time of life when a woman’s menstrual periods stop.1 This increase is not completely understood, but cholesterol, high blood pressure, and fat around the abdomen—all risk factors for coronary artery disease—also increase around this time. In the past, medical research on heart disease was primarily focused on men. Now, researchers recognize that there are significant differences in coronary artery disease in women and men. For example, men usually have typical heart attack symptoms: chest pain that grips the chest and spreads to the shoulders, neck, and arms. Although women can have these symptoms too, women are more likely to have less common symptoms such as breathlessness, heartburn, nausea, jaw pain, back pain, or fatigue. Heart attacks in women are often brought on by anxiety or mental stress, and even sleep. Heart attacks in men more often come on with exercise or exertion. Because women do not always
