Call to Action for Cardiovascular Disease in Women: Epidemiology, Awareness, Access, and Delivery of Equitable Health Care: A Presidential Advisory From the American Heart Association
Why the study?
Pervasive gaps in knowledge and care delivery persist in cardiovascular disease in women, requiring action to reduce sex-based disparities and achieve health equity.
Design
Presidential advisory and narrative review
Discussion
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Member takes
Key expert perspectives
Captured external expert commentary on this paper, strongest first. Original sources are linked where available.
“Comparing data from women with data from men inherently positions data from men as the gold standard. For example, the belief that women having a heart attack will present more often with atypical symptoms carries an undertone that women present in the 'wrong way.'”
“We must urgently address the pervasive gaps in knowledge and health care delivery to reduce gender-based disparities and achieve equity. There is no improving cardiovascular health without achieving health equity.”
“In 2000, as we began to have sex-specific diagnostic, therapeutic and educational messages, CVD mortality among women dropped dramatically. By 2013, for the first time, fewer women than men died of heart disease. Now, we are seeing an increase in CV mortality both among women and men. Women are less healthy, even young women, and are coming to pregnancy with lower levels of heart health. That is one of the more frightening features. We must address women across the life span, with particular attention paid to young women and women of racial/ethnic minorities.”
Implication
Clinicians must adopt equity-focused protocols to close awareness and access gaps for women; extends prior data by delivering a structured research and policy roadmap.
Key Points
- Delineate an actionable roadmap to eliminate sex-based disparities in cardiovascular health by evaluating epidemiology, prevention, care delivery, and health equity in women.
- Synthesized epidemiological registries, government statistics from the CDC and NIH, and survey data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey across 2001 to 2016.
- Evaluated the impact of traditional risk factors, social determinants of health, and female-specific reproductive factors across demographic groups.
- Smoking and high systolic blood pressure remained the first and second leading risk factors contributing to years of life lost in the United States in both 1990 and 2019.
- Hypertension is highest in non-Hispanic Black women, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol is highest in non-Hispanic White women, and diabetes is highest in Hispanic women.
- Female-specific risks such as early menarche (<11 years of age), premature menopause (<40 years of age), and adverse pregnancy complications significantly elevate lifetime cardiovascular disease risks.
Structured PICO
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Population
A presidential advisory from the American Heart Association summarizing epidemiology, awareness, access, and delivery of equitable cardiovascular care for women in the United States.
This AHA advisory provides a comprehensive framework and call to action to eliminate sex-based disparities in cardiovascular care and research.
Cite This Study
A 2022 study conducted a review in Cardiovascular Disease in Women. Cardiovascular disease disparities in women was evaluated. This American Heart Association presidential advisory outlines a comprehensive roadmap to achieve equity in cardiovascular health for women by addressing gaps in epidemiology, awareness, and care delivery.