Key result
Coronary microvascular disease in women remains underdiagnosed due to absent epicardial blockages and misleading stress tests.
Why the study?
Coronary microvascular disease in women is difficult to diagnose due to lack of visible blockages and often normal or false positive stress tests, leading to underdiagnosis and risk of adverse events.
Highlights the diagnostic challenges of coronary microvascular disease in women and emphasizes the need for symptom-based treatment when traditional testing is unrevealing.
May support considering CMD despite normal testing in symptomatic women; leaves open validated diagnostic algorithms.
Heart disease is the number one killer of women in the United States. Part of the difficulty with diagnosing heart disease in women is related to a disease process called coronary microvascular disease (CMVD; previously called syndrome X). Also known as nonobstructive coronary artery disease, CMVD is challenging to identify because often there is a lack of convincing evidence of an acute problem during evaluation. In these patients, the epicardial coronary arteries do not have visible blockages, and stress tests often are interpreted as normal or false positive. Therefore, symptomatic patients often are left undiagnosed, frustrated, and at risk of adverse cardiac events. Frequently, the only method of diagnosis is treatment of the symptoms. This information is provided to help advanced practice nurses and other clinicians diagnose and treat CMVD.
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A 2022 study conducted a review in Coronary microvascular disease. Coronary microvascular disease in women is frequently underdiagnosed due to the absence of visible epicardial blockages and often normal or false-positive stress test results.
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