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Women Unhappy With Their Cardiac Care
Jan. 27, 2003 -- Heart disease is the leading killer of women in the U.S., but getting women and those who care for them to realize heart disease is a major threat is only half the battle. A new survey shows 52% of women with heart disease say they're unhappy with their medical care and face major hurdles getting the help and support they need for recovery.
Researchers say the survey, published in the January/February issue of Women's Health Issues, identifies some key issues that might help explain why women with heart disease tend to fare worse than men.
Heart disease causes more than 500,000 deaths and 450,000 heart attacks among women every year in the U.S. But despite the severity of the issue, research consistently shows that most women don't perceive heart disease as a serious personal health threat.
Researchers say those misconceptions may be putting women at risk. The survey of 204 women with heart disease found only 35% of the women who reported symptoms and 68% of their doctors correctly linked their symptoms to heart problems.
Although about a third of women reported classic symptoms of heart disease, such as chest pain, an almost equal number said they experienced symptoms less commonly linked to the heart like dizziness, nausea, fatigue, and back pain.
Only about half of the women surveyed knew that they were at risk for heart disease before their diagnosis, even though many indicated that heart disease occurred among men in their families.
"Many women said that heart disease was 'a man's disease' rather than one women should worry about," write the researchers.
This lack of awareness may also affect the quality of treatment they receive. The survey found that once the diagnosis of heart disease was made about a third did not ask questions about the recommended treatment.
Among the more than half who said they were dissatisfied with the quality of their medical treatment, 58% said their doctor was to blame, citing problems like insensitivity, abruptness, and ignorance about heart disease in women.
The survey also found that women had a hard time making the lifestyle changes needed to improve their health due to a lack of support and information, and their mental health suffered as well. Fifty-seven percent said they suffered a mental illness as a result of their heart disease, including anxiety, depression, or both.
More than a quarter of the women surveyed said their relationship with their families suffered after they were diagnosed, frequently because they couldn't keep up with their responsibilities at home.
"This survey is a wake-up call for healthcare professionals who need to understand how much their attitudes and communication styles influence their female patients' willingness to ask questions, participate in medical decisions, and adhere to recommend treatment and lifestyle modification," says researcher Sharonne Hayes, MD, director of Mayo Clinic Women's Heart Clinic, in a news release.
SOURCE: Women's Health Issues, January/February 2003 • News release, Mayo Clinic.
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