Women killed by the gender gap in heart treatments
THOUSANDS of women have died needlessly due to a gender gap in treatment for heart attacks, a report warns today.
Research found women were 50 per cent more likely to receive the wrong initial diagnosis when suffering a heart attack than men.
Two women lose their lives every day in the UK due to inequalities in awareness, diagnosis and treatment, according to the British Heart Foundation.
Women are also less likely to receive standard treatments, including bypass surgery, it was said.
The BHF estimates more than 8,200 women died between 2002 and 2013 in England and Wales as a result of the gender bias.
Cardiologist Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, associate medical director of the BHF, said: “Heart attacks have never been more treatable.
“Yet women are dying needlessly because heart attacks are often seen as a man’s disease, and women don’t receive the same standard of treatment as men.
“The studies detailed in this briefing have revealed inequalities at every stage of a woman’s medical journey. Together, we must change this.”
Women are more likely than men to delay seeking help when experiencing symptoms of a heart attack, it is said.
A global review found that, for men, the time from the onset of symptoms to arrival at hospital was between one and a half hours and three and a half hours.
Deadly
For women, the time was between two hours and seven hours.
During treatment, women are also less likely to receive 13 of the 16 lifesaving treatments which should be considered for every patient with a suspected heart attack.
Chris Gale, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Leeds and lead author of some of the studies cited in the report, said the problem is not unique to Britain.
He said: “Studies across the globe have also revealed gender gaps in treatment, suggesting this is a deeply entrenched and complex issue.
“On their own, the differences in care are very small, but when we look at this across the population of the UK, it adds up to a significant loss of life. We can do better.”
About 35,000 women are admitted to hospital following a heart attack in the UK each year – an average of 98 women a day, or four per hour.
BHF analysis found twice as many women die from coronary heart disease – the underlying cause of most heart attacks – as die from breast cancer.
The charity now wants to put an end to the misconception that a heart attack is a male disease.
Dr Babu-Narayan said: “The assumption that women are not at risk of heart attack is false and has proven to be deadly. We want to empower women to better understand their risk and to know the many symptoms of a heart attack.”