Scientists at Leiden University have found that postmenopausal women with clogged arteries have a higher risk of heart attack than men of the same age. This means they may benefit from more aggressive treatment. Research published European Heart Journal.
About 25,000 people from six countries in North America, Europe, and Asia participated in the study. Using coronary computed tomography, the scientists evaluated the presence of plaques in the heart arteries, their composition, location and degree of vasoconstriction. The patients were followed for an average of 3.7 years.
Scientists have found that severe atherosclerosis in women begins an average of 12 years later than men. However, postmenopausal women (55 years and older) had a higher risk of heart attack than men.
At the same time, postmenopausal women with high atherosclerosis were 6 times more likely to have a heart attack than women with less atherosclerosis. On the other hand, men with high atherosclerosis were only twice as likely to have a heart attack than men with less atherosclerosis.
This means that the same atherosclerotic vascular lesions can be more dangerous for women.
“Our results suggest that postmenopausal women may need higher doses of statins or the addition of another lipid-lowering drug. More research is needed to confirm these results, the scientists said.