Scientists from the Garcia de Orta Hospital (Portugal) found that women die from a heart attack twice as often as men. The study was presented at a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology.
Approximately 900 patients admitted to the hospital with myocardial infarction were included in the study. Percutaneous coronary intervention was applied to all of them to relieve vascular occlusion. Women were older than men (average age 67 versus 60) and were more likely to have high blood pressure, diabetes, and stroke.
After 30 days 11.8% of women and only 4.6% of men died. After five years, almost a third (32.1%) of women and 16.9% of men died.
“Despite percutaneous coronary intervention after adjustment to other conditions and at the same time as men, women are two to three times more likely than men to have a short- and long-term outcome after a heart attack.” , scientists noted.
Scientists believe that genetic predisposition and differences in myocardial infarction symptoms in women (compared to men) may play a role in increasing female mortality.
The researchers took into account other factors that may have influenced the relationship, such as diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, coronary heart disease, heart failure, chronic kidney disease, peripheral artery disease, and stroke.