Cardio-Neurovascular diseases in women

Cardiovascular diseases encompass a range of conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels, including coronary heart disease (blocked heart arteries), cerebrovascular diseases, such as strokes, and other conditions. They do not affect only men; in fact, they are the leading cause of death among women, accounting for around 40% of female deaths in Europe and nearly a third of female deaths worldwide. Yet cardiovascular diseases are still viewed as ‘men’s diseases’, and in women they are still all too often underestimated. This can lead to a later diagnosis and delayed treatment.

European cardiology specialists, particularly those from the European Society of Cardiology, emphasise the importance of recognising the differences between women and men in order to improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up for female patients.

What you need to know about cardiovascular disease in women

• Take action from the start: Prevention of cardiovascular disease should begin at childbearing age and continue throughout life.
  
  
• Get informed to protect yourself better: To protect yourself effectively, it is essential to know your own risk factors and to recognise the warning signs, which may differ from those in men.
  
  
• Specific risks: Traditional risk factors (high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, etc.) often have a more significant impact on women. Furthermore, certain risk factors are specific to women or more common in them. Besides factors directly linked to certain stages of a woman’s life (pregnancy, menopause), other health conditions also contribute independently to cardiovascular risk.

Did you know?

Women’s arteries are often narrower and more reactive to stress than men’s. This is one of the reasons why certain risk factors, such as smoking or diabetes, have proportionally more serious consequences for their cardiovascular health.