Routine cardiovascular risk assessment in women must include traditional and sex-specific risk factors, such as pregnancy history and early-onset menopause, to improve diagnosis and outcomes.
Highlights the critical need for routine cardiovascular risk assessment in women incorporating sex-specific risk factors and recognizing atypical presentations of acute coronary syndrome.
Cardiovascular disease is the leading global cause of death in women but remains underdiagnosed and undertreated. Health professionals play an important role in improving the heart health of Australian women. Routine heart health checks should be offered to all women 45 years of age and older and to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women 30 years of age and older. Cardiovascular risk assessment in women must include traditional and sex-specific risk factors, including their pregnancy history and early-onset menopause. Women with pregnancy-related hypertensive and metabolic disorders have an increased long-term cardiovascular risk and require close monitoring. Women with acute coronary syndrome may not experience classical chest pain. More often, they experience cardiovascular events in the absence of obstructive coronary disease and have poorer cardiovascular outcomes. The recognition of sex-specific differences and more sex-specific trials are key to improving clinical outcomes.
Montarello et al. (Tue,) conducted a review in Coronary artery disease. Routine cardiovascular risk assessment in women must include traditional and sex-specific risk factors, such as pregnancy history and early-onset menopause, to improve diagnosis and outcomes.
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