Feb 6, 2009 9:45 pm US/Eastern
Doctors Warn Women Of Heart Disease Dangers
Thousands Of Free Screenings Offered For Women Across Country
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Heart disease is the number one killer of women in the country. (File)
CBS
She's only 45, fit, active and healthy enough to have just given birth. So heart disease was the farthest thing from Birte Jorgenson's mind, until right at the end of her pregnancy.
"I was having heart palpitations, and then when I would go upstairs I would get kind of out of breath, pretty severe though almost to the point of I couldn't walk – you know make another step. I would worry about it, and then I was also having blackouts," she tells CBS 2.
Jorgenson was suffering a serious arrhythmia that's being treated. Her case is a reminder that heart disease – all types of it – is the number one killer of women in this country. But women often think they're immune from heart disease, that it's a male problem and their doctors may not take symptoms in women seriously enough, partly because women often experience heart disease differently than men.
"They also can present [women] with much more atypical symptoms such as fatigue, shortness of breath, any trouble breathing on exertion," says Dr. Margaret Furman of the Beth Israel Medical Center.
Which is why hospitals all over the tri-state area held free heart screenings for women today. Thousands of women got a handle on their heart health.
So if you went through the heart screening, and got a clean bill of health, or your doctor says your heart looks pretty healthy, now the key is to keep it that way. We're talking heart disease prevention, here's what you need to know.
"Seeking out care of a physician to control the modified risk factors including the treatment of high blood pressure, cholesterol, obesity, diabetes, and exercise in general," says Dr. Furman.
In other words, you can do something to reduce your risk of heart disease, whether you're a man or a woman.
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