Men and women undergo heart surgery at different rates, with women undergoing fewer bypass surgeries than men. Some of the reasons for this are fairly obvious. First, compared to women, men are generally taller, weigh more and have a larger body surface area. This means that men generally have larger coronary arteries, which do not clog readily as the smaller arteries in women. And the smaller size of women’s coronary arteries presents a greater technical challenge for performing angioplasty or bypass surgery.
Secondly, because estrogen is thought to be protective against cardiovascular disease, women are rarely affected by cardiovascular disorders (CVD) before menopause. As such, most women are older and in worst overall physical condition when they do require treatment.
Finally women are also more likely to have the complications including diabetes, high blood pressure, heart failure, obesity and cerebral or peripheral vascular diseases.
In addition to gender related risks, there are number of other risk factors that can lead to cardiovascular diseases in both men and women. Risk factors are divided into two categories: major and contributing. The major risk factors are those that have been proved to increase the risk of heart diseases. Contributing factors are those that doctors think can lead to an increased risk, but exact role played by them is not defined.
One of the major risk factors which is not preventable is family history. If your parents or grandparents are plagued by CVD, you are at a greater risk of CVD. However, other factors for heart disease are largely preventable through diet exercise and lifestyle. A few major risks factors are discussed below:
Smoking
Cigarette smoking has been medically determined to be a major risk factor for coronary artery disease. Smokers have 200 greater risk of developing coronary heart disease as compared to the non smokers. Smoking cause clogging of coronary arteries which heightens the risk of blood clots resulting in heart attack. Smoking also increases LDL which is bad cholesterol and decreases the HDL – the good cholesterol. So it can be strongly stated that – Smoking will kill your heart; do not smoke.
High cholesterol
Cholesterol is one of the groups that make up the fatty or lipid compounds in the bloodstream. Cholesterol is produced by the liver. The amount of cholesterol circulating in the blood is also affected by weight, diet and exercise. Most cholesterol is transported to the body’s cell in small particles called low density lipoproteins (LDL). High level of LDL are associated with increased risk for heart diseases, earning it the designation of “bad cholesterol”. They deposit on the walls of the arteries as plaque. Over the period of the time, plaque can cause obstruction or occlusion of an artery, triggering a heart attack.
Diabetes
In the U.S., six percent of people have diabetes. Factors like the bad information about food and consumption people get on TV and personal behavior such as over eating and too much fat in the diet are primarily at fault in the soaring numbers of adult diabetic patients. Persons with diabetes also tend to have other traits that make them more at risk for developing heart problems. These include obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Hypertension
High blood pressure or hypertension is the leading cause of stroke and a major risk factor for heart attack and kidney failure. There are no typical symptoms for hypertension. Without regular and periodic blood pressure screening you may be unaware of its presence.
Obesity
Obesity is defined as a body mass index greater than 30. Obesity is directly related to heart diseases including hypertension, diabetes and vascular diseases. Weight reduction can help in lowering the risk of the heart diseases.
Family History
Some form of diseases are inherited from family members. If your parents had a history of heart diseases, you should see your doctor regularly to monitor your health condition.
Source-http://www.greendivamom.com/author/savneet/
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