Living through a heart attack?

Question

i've read that sometimes women have no sympotoms of a heart attack. first of all, how is this possible?

but more importantly:

does this mean that a person can live through a heat attack even with no medical help or attention??

please let me know anything you know, wether it be from education or experience. i've been losing sleep over this question.

thanks.

Answer 1

Yes, men and women can have heart attacks which damage part of the heart but not enough to cause pain or symptoms. This is referred to as "silent ischemia." Damage will usually show up on an EKG stress test or an echocardiogram. There might not be any symptoms during the normal course of the day but if that person is stressed out or under a lot of physical strain their heart might not have have the capacity to deal with it and they can collapse. ALso, if they have a second heart attack and the first blockage has never been cleared they can be in real trouble.

If there is mild pain or faintness or other symptoms, women are more likely than men to be misdiagnosed. A lot of doctors consider women to be less prone to heart attacks than men so they overlook symptoms and say "it's stress" or something minor. While estrogen does protect a woman's heart from getting diseased, when they reach menopause and their estrogen levels fall and their risk level goes way up, perhaps higher than men. Plus if men have had gradual closing of their cardiac ateries they actually build up some protection against a heart attack and may be more likely to survive a big one than a woman who suddenly has become at risk later in life.