Heart Care for Women

It's time to take women's heart health seriously. Do you?

Each year, heart disease kills one in three women, according to the American Heart Association (AHA). Yet only 44% of women know that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States.

When it comes to protecting women's heart health and treating heart disease in women, UPMC has you covered. Through our experts at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, we specialize in women's heart health at every age and stage of life.

What is Heart Disease in Women?

People with female hormones deserve special consideration when it comes to heart health. People who have been pregnant, especially, may need special heart care.

The average age for women to have a heart attack is 72, according to the Office on Women's Health. But heart disease can affect any person at any age.

Nearly 45% of females age 20 and older have some form of cardiovascular disease, according to the AHA. But many people don't know they are at risk for heart disease.

Warning signs of a heart attack in females

What's more, heart disease in women looks and behaves differently than heart disease in men. Take the major signs of a heart attack in women. Some people may not get the sharp chest or arm pain that men do but have subtle signs, like nausea, jaw pain, or extreme tiredness.

For all people, the most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort, like pressure or squeezing. Some women may not have any warning signs of a heart attack, or the signs may be confusing or subtle.

Warning signs of heart attack in females include:

• Dizziness, fainting or lightheadedness.
• Extreme fatigue or tiredness that won't go away.
• Nausea or vomiting — Some people think they have the flu or acid reflux.
• Pain in the jaw, neck, throat, upper abdomen, or back — Men tend to have pain that radiates down their arms.
• Shortness of breath, with or without chest discomfort.

If you have any signs of a heart attack, call 911 or have someone drive you to the nearest hospital emergency room.

Heart issues during and after pregnancy

Pregnant or postpartum people also have added risk factors, such as pregnancy-related hypertension, preeclampsia, and postpartum hypertension. Having one of these pregnancy complications can raise your risk of heart disease later in life.

Hypertension (high blood pressure) may affect as many as one in 12 pregnancies in people between the ages of 20 and 44, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. When left untreated, hypertension can lead to heart disease, including heart failure, heart attack, and stroke.

Your pregnancy and heart care teams can help you manage hypertension throughout pregnancy, during delivery, and after giving birth.

What Heart Conditions Do We Treat?

UPMC heart care experts can help diagnose and treat heart problems, including risk factors for heart disease in women.

Heart problems we treat 

UPMC experts treat many heart problems:

• Arrhythmias, such as premature ventricular contractions, premature atrial contractions, supraventricular tachycardia, and atrial fibrillation.
• Cancer-related heart diseases due to chemotherapy and radiation.
• Coronary artery disease, including mild and severe blockages.
• Heart failure, including weakening of the heart muscle and stiffness of the heart.
• Heart valve diseases, such as aortic stenosis and mitral regurgitation.
• High blood pressure and high cholesterol.
• Microvascular disease.
• Nervous system disorders such as stroke or transient ischemic attacks.
• Peripheral vascular disease.
• Peri- and post-menopausal-related heart symptoms and conditions.
• Spontaneous coronary artery dissection.

Pregnancy-related heart care

Heart conditions can cause complications during pregnancy. We offer preconception counseling and postpartum care in these situations.

We meet with pregnant people who may have:

• Arrhythmias.
• Congenital heart problems.
• Gestational hypertension.
• Preeclampsia.
• Prior heart attacks.
• Postpartum hypertension.
• Valve disease.

Other heart-related conditions

Heart disease is also a risk factor for problems in the arteries and veins. We offer expert care to diagnose and treat blood vessel-related disorders.

These include:

• Aneurysms — A localized, blood-filled bulge in a blood vessel.
• Carotid stenosis — The narrowing of the neck artery.
• Deep vein thrombosis — A blood clot in one or more deep veins, often the legs.
• Leg ischemia — A lack of blood and oxygen to the legs.
• Leg ulcers — Wounds due to improper functioning of leg veins.
• Varicose veins — Enlarged and twisted veins.

What Women's Heart Care Services and Treatments Does UPMC Offer?

Regardless of your age or gender, preventing and treating heart disease starts with early and accurate detection. Knowing your risk for heart disease can help you take charge of your heart health.

Our experts provide assessments to determine your risk of cardiovascular disease. They will review and evaluate your lifestyle, medical history, and family history.

If you are diagnosed with heart disease at another health care system, you can also come to UPMC for a second opinion on your diagnosis and care plan.

Diagnostic cardiac testing and services

UPMC experts can also help diagnose heart-related illnesses using one or more diagnostic tools.

These include:

• Cardiac catheterization — Using a tube through your blood vessels to examine and treat the heart.
• Cardiac stress testing — Heart imaging after exercise, medicines, or changes to your pacemaker settings that stress your heart.
• Cardiac ultrasound (also called an echocardiogram) – A sound-wave-based test to see and examine the heart.
• Coronary artery calcium scoring — A test that estimates your risk of future heart events.
• Holter and event monitors.
• Imaging tests — Including cardiac MRI, CT, electrocardiogram (EKGs), and electron beam CT.
• Presurgery cardiac clearance.
• Tilt table tests.

Heart condition treatments

Depending on the results of your diagnostic tests, your heart care team may recommend the following treatment options:

• Catheter-based procedures, like angioplasty, stenting, and valve replacement.
• Lifestyle changes.
• Medicine to manage your heart condition and related symptoms.
• Open or minimally invasive heart surgery.

Your cardiologist will refer you to a UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute location for treatment if you need a catheter-based procedure or surgery.

Fetal heart program

Experts at the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute work with your pregnancy care team to safeguard not only your heart health but also the health of your developing fetus. Our fetal heart program provides comprehensive care for pregnant people, developing fetuses, and infants with or at risk for developing cardiovascular disease.

Postpartum hypertension program

If you have postpartum hypertension, your pregnancy and heart care teams work together to manage your care.

Preeclampsia awareness class

If you are pregnant or recently gave birth, you need to know your risk for preeclampsia. It's a serious condition that causes high blood pressure during pregnancy. It can last weeks or even months after giving birth, causing symptoms such as swelling, headaches, and blurry vision.

Preeclampsia affects from 5% to 8% of pregnancies in the United States, according to the March of Dimes. For most pregnancies, preeclampsia often leads to preterm births.

When left untreated, preeclampsia can cause serious and sometimes fatal health problems for you and your baby, including life-threatening seizures called eclampsia. For pregnant people, preeclampsia can damage their brain, kidneys, and liver.

Our heart care experts help you manage your heart health before, during, and after pregnancy. We provide several in-person and online preeclampsia awareness classes throughout the year so you and your loved ones can learn about the risk factors and management of this pregnancy-related disorder.

Women's Heart Health: Who is on Your Heart Care Team?

The UPMC team of experts helps care for your heart at every age and stage of life. Our heart health experts also educate you about your heart health and any lifestyle changes or treatment plans you may need.

Your cardiac care team may include:

• Heart doctor (cardiologist).
• Echocardiographer.
• Medical assistants.
• Nurse manager.
• Nuclear medicine technologist.

Your cardiac care team also works with many physicians within and outside our network to provide comprehensive care for you and your loved one.

The specialists that we most commonly work with include:

• Brain and nervous system doctors (neurologists).
• Cancer doctors (oncologists).
• Doctors specializing in joints, muscles, and bones (rheumatologists).
• Family practice and primary care doctors or providers.
• Hormone doctors (endocrinologists).
• Internists.
• Lung doctors (pulmonologists).
• Obstetricians and maternal-fetal medicine providers.
• Other specialized heart doctors, such as electrophysiologists, interventionalists, and heart failure experts.
• Surgeons and anesthesiologists.

Why Choose UPMC for Women's Heart Health?

Whatever your age or gender, UPMC offers heart care that meets your needs. As a world-renowned research hospital, UPMC also participates in ongoing research and clinical trials.

Clinical trials

Clinical trials study whether and how well a new heart disease drug, therapy, or device works for certain heart conditions. They provide new options that might help treat your condition better than current options or if other options don't work or have stopped working for you. Depending on your heart condition, your heart care team may suggest you participate in a clinical trial.

The Postpartum Hypertension Clinic Registry

The Postpartum Hypertension Clinic Registry collects research data on postpartum people with a history of high blood pressure and pregnancy-related hypertension, including preeclampsia and gestational hypertension. The registry data will help guide best care practices to reduce postpartum hypertension and long-term risk of heart disease.

By UPMC Editorial Staff. Last reviewed on 2024-09-05.