medications – Emirates Cardiac Society

Here’s what you need to know if you’ve been diagnosed with cardiovascular disease

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Ask your doctor to evaluate you before resuming sexual activity.

If you’ve had heart failure or a heart attack, cardiac rehabilitation and regular physical activity can reduce the risk of complications related to sexual activity.021.

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If you’re thinking about starting birth control or getting pregnant, be sure to talk to your doctor first.

Don’t skip the medications that could improve cardiovascular symptoms because you’re concerned they could impact your sex drive or function. Your heart health should come first!

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If you’re a post-menopausal woman with cardiovascular disease, it’s generally safe to use estrogen that’s topically or vaginally inserted for the treatment of painful intercourse.

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Women & Atrial Fibrillation

What is Afib?

Have you ever felt your heart flutter, race or skip a beat? Most of us have at some point, But if this happens more frequently, you may have atrial fibrillation.
Atrial fibrillation (Afib) is a problem with the heart’s rhythm – the way it beats. When someone is “in Afib,” the heartbeats in a rapid, chaotic way.

What are some of the signs & symptoms?

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very rapid or irregular heartbeats – some women say they feel their heart flip-flopping in their chests, skipping a beat or fluttering

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Listen to your body, Afib can occur every once and a while (called paroxysmal atrial fibrillation) or all the time (chronic atrial fibrillation).

Either way, be sure to tell your health care provider about all of your symptoms.

Millions of Women live with atrial fibrillation (Afib). Even though it is more common in men, women with Afib are more likely to have a stroke. Untreated, Afib can also lead to heart failure and chronic fatigue.

Risk factors:

Afib is more likely as you get older. On average, women tend to develop Afib around 75 years of age (vs 67 for men). However, younger women can also have it. Other risk factors can include:

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How is Afib diagnosed?

Your doctor will first ask how you have been feeling and perform a physical exam. If you’ve noticed chest pains, breathlessness or a racing heart, be prepared to tell him or her when they happen (laying down, climbing stairs, etc.) and how often.

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There are a number of things you can do to live well with Afib and prevent problems.

Pay attention to risk factors for Afib, heart disease and stroke. Make sure your blood pressure and cholesterol levels are stable.

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Eat a healthy diet.

Exercise regularly and monitor your weight.

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Know what triggers an episode. Doing so will help you prevent or better anticipate Afib.
Common risks that triggers an AFib episode: alcohol, caffeine, upper respiratory infections and extreme stress.

Learn how to pace yourself. Most women living with Afib will tell you it is a livable condition

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Have a plan to stay calm. Anxiety can make episodes much worse.

Take your medications as prescribed.

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Know your risk of stroke & other health problems

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Possible treatments include lifestyle changes and medications and/or medical procedures

blood-thinning medications to prevent clots

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heart rate control medications that bring the heart rate to a normal level

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heart rhythm control medications that restore or maintain normal heart rhythm

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electrical cardioversion –paddles are applied to the chest to shock the heart back into a normal rhythm

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catheter ablation – wires are inserted into veins in the leg or arm and threaded to the heart to alter abnormal areas that may be causing the abnormal heart rhythm

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surgical maze – small cuts are made in the heart, creating a “maze” that prevents the abnormal beats from controlling the heart. This is a very effective treatment, but because this requires open heart surgery, it is often used when other options have failed.

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It’s not a one-time episode!
Afib is often an ongoing condition that needs to be managed. Women say having regular appointments with their cardiologists and taking medicines to steady their hearts is something you need to follow to maintain a healthy life.

Heart Disease and Diabetes in Women

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Your body gets most of its energy from glucose, a form of sugar that comes from some of the food you eat. If you have diabetes, it’s harder for your body to turn food into energy. That’s because the body either:

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cannot produce enough insulin (a hormone produced by the pancreas),

or both.

cannot use insulin (also called insulin resistance),

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Without enough insulin, glucose can’t enter the cells. Over time, the amount of glucose in your blood rises and cells are starved of energy. In addition to heart attack and stroke, uncontrolled diabetes can eventually lead to other health problems as well, such as blindness, kidney failure, and amputations.

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Heart disease & diabetes often occur together. Whether you have heart disease or are at high risk of it, get your blood glucose (sugar) level checked regularly, especially if diabetes runs in your family.

Diabetes

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10.6 million women have diabetes (8 percent of all women ages 20 years and older)
3 million women who have diabetes are undiagnosed.
34.4 million women have pre-diabetes.
14.6% of African-American women have diabetes.
11.8% of Hispanic-American women have diabetes.
Prevalence for diabetes African American women is two times higher than in Caucasian women (14.6% of African-American women have diabetes while 6.1% of Caucasian women have diabetes)

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Heart Disease

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43.8 million women are currently living with some form of cardiovascular disease. Nearly 7 million women have a history of heart attack and/or angina.
6.6 million women are currently living with coronary heart disease (CHD).
Heart disease is the leading cause of death of American women and is responsible for 1 in 3 deaths in women annually.

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Diabetes dramatically increases a woman’s chances of developing heart disease and having a heart attack and at much younger ages.

Diabetes erases the heart protective benefits of estrogen during child-bearing years.

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Women with diabetes are up to five times more likely to develop heart disease than women who don’t have diabetes. Women with diabetes who have survived a heart attack are at much greater risk of having a second one compared to women without diabetes. Diabetes contributes to heart-related deaths.

Two out of three women with diabetes die from heart disease.

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While the death rate from heart disease has dropped by 27 percent in women without diabetes, deaths from heart and blood vessel disease in women with diabetes have increased by 23 percent over the last 30 years.

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Smoking doubles the risk for heart disease in people with diabetes.

2 out of 3 adults with diabetes report also having high blood pressure or taking prescription medications to lower their blood pressure.

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Women with diabetes are 2.5 times more likely to have heart attacks.
The risk for stroke is 1.5 times higher among people with diabetes.

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2 out of 3 adults with diabetes report also having high blood pressure or taking prescription medications

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Know Your (Diabetes) ABCs

Your health care team will focus on controlling your blood sugar levels and lowering blood pressure and blood cholesterol, together with use of aspirin and other medications as indicated.

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A

stands for A1C (a test that shows average blood glucose level over the past three months). Have this checked at least twice a year.

A1C target Below 7 percent

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B

is for blood pressure. High blood pressure is serious and can make your heart work too hard.
Blood pressure target Below 130/80 mm Hg

C

is for cholesterol (lipids). Have it checked at least once a year.

Blood fat (cholesterol) targets LDL (bad) cholesterol Under 100 mg/dL Triglycerides Under 150 mg/dL HDL (good) cholesterol For men: above 40 mg/dL For women: above 50 mg/dL

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What Medications Should I Avoid if I Have Heart Failure

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Is There a Treatment for Heart Failure?

There are more treatment options available for heart failure than ever before. Tight control over your medications and lifestyle, coupled with careful monitoring, are the first steps. As the condition progresses, doctors specializing in the treatment of heart failure can offer more advanced treatment options.

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The goals of treating heart failure are primarily to decrease the likelihood of disease progression (thereby decreasing the risk of death and the need for hospitalization), to lessen symptoms, and to improve quality of life.

Together, you and your doctor can determine the best course of treatment for you.