In addition to the fact that the symptoms of a heart attack in women are often different from those in men, a new study found that the reasons for these variations are frequently distinct as well. In women and persons under the age of 45, a common cause of heart attacks is not the normal and expected clogged arteries (medically known as atherosclerosis), but rather another form of stressful cardiac condition that can be more difficult to diagnose.
Unusual causes of heart attacks in women included spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), which was six times more likely than in men. SCAD is a heart attack caused by a tear in the lining of a heart artery or bleeding within the wall of a heart artery, which leads to reduced blood flow to the heart, causing a cardiac event. According to Padma Shenoy, M.D., a cardiologist at Manhattan Cardiology, non-traditional causes were most common in women and those under the age of 45. SCAD heart attacks were most common in young women without typical risk factors for heart disease, such as smoking, diabetes, and high cholesterol. Read the article
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