Why Are Women Denied Lifesaving Cardiac Care?

President Clinton’s stent surgery brought new focus to America’s number-one killer, but it did little to expose the bias that is often present when women seek treatment for a heart attack.

“Despite the fact that more women than men die from cardiovascular disease in the United States, and despite the established benefits of PCI (percutaneous coronary intervention or coronary angioplasty) in reducing fatal and nonfatal ischemic complications in patients with acute myocardial infarction and high-risk acute coronary syndromes (ACS), only an estimated 33 percent of annual PCIs are performed in women,” says an American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Statement.

FACTS About Florida and Heart Disease:

• Heart disease, stroke, and other cardiovascular diseases are the No. 1 killer of women in Florida.
• Heart disease and stroke account for 33.4% of all female deaths in Florida.
• On average, nearly 76 females die from heart disease and stroke in Florida each day.
• Hispanic women generally have higher rates of certain cardiovascular risk factors – including physical inactivity, diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndrome – than white women, and are less likely to have detected or treated them.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Mortality data based on WISQARS Leading Cause of Death Reports, 2005; Risk factor data from the BRFSS, 2007.