ORLANDO, FL (November 10, 2015) – The Women’s Heart Alliance survey data showcased at the American Heart Association (AHA) Scientific Sessions demonstrates the need for a national campaign to boost awareness about women’s heart disease, among both physicians and women at risk. Scientific advisors to the Women’s Heart Alliance, Dr. Noel Bairey Merz, director of the Barbra Streisand Women’s Health Center at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and Dr. Holly Andersen, director of education and outreach at the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center presented two abstracts that highlighted significant knowledge gaps that exist about heart disease and its unique impact on women.
In November 2014, the Women’s Heart Alliance launched a nationwide survey to increase physician awareness and action toward heart risk, and determine barriers and opportunities to personalize awareness of the women’s heart health epidemic. One abstract examined data from 1,011 U.S. women aged 25 – 60 and found that the issue of heart disease in women is largely invisible even though it is a pressing health concern. The second abstract analyzed survey data from 200 primary care physicians and 100 cardiologists and found women’s heart disease is not one of their top tier concerns. Both abstracts, based off 2014 data, emphasize the desperate need for a national awareness campaign, underscoring the Women’s Heart Alliance’s mission to raise awareness, encourage action and drive new research to fight women’s heart disease.
“With one woman dying of heart disease nearly every minute, the Women’s Heart Alliance recognizes a need for more information about how women and physicians perceive the disease,” said Dr. Bairey Merz. “The Women’s Heart Alliance is proud to collaborate with key experts to raise awareness of heart disease, which is the number one killer of women in the United States.”
Drs. Bairey Merz and Andersen collaborated with multiple experts and organizations to co-author the abstracts. The abstract titled, Women Speak up About Personalized Heart Health Awareness: A Women’s Heart Alliance Research Report, was authored by Brigham and Women’s Hospital; Cedars Sinai Heart Institute; New York Presbyterian; GFK; St. Vincent Hospital; Society for Women’s Health Research; WomenHeart; Sister to Sister; Texas Tech University Health Sciences; University of California, San Francisco; and the Women’s Heart Alliance.
The abstract titled, Physicians Speak up About Heart Health Awareness and Action: A Women’s Heart Alliance Research Report, was authored by New York Presbyterian; Cedars Sinai Heart Institute; Edge Research; St. Vincent Hospital; Society for Women’s Health Research; WomenHeart; Sister to Sister; American Heart Association; Texas Tech University Health Sciences; University of California, San Francisco; Brigham and Women’s Hospital; and the Women’s Heart Alliance.
“Heart disease is under-researched, undertreated and frequently misdiagnosed in women,” said Dr. Bairey Merz. “Women’s hearts are physiologically different from men’s hearts, leading to unique risk factors, signs, symptoms, and treatment options. We recognize that progress is needed on both the national stage and in cities and communities at risk around the country to save and improve women’s lives. We must all come together to fight the lady killer.”
About the Women’s Heart Alliance
The Women’s Heart Alliance (WHA) was formed to raise awareness, encourage action and drive new research to fight women’s heart disease. It’s a unique collaboration between two of America’s leading medical institutions—the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute and the Ronald O. Perelman Heart Institute at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center—and two major philanthropists and leaders in business and entertainment, Barbra Streisand and Ronald O. Perelman. Learn more at www.fighttheladykiller.org, and on Facebook, Twitter @FightLadyKiller and Instagram @fighttheladykiller.