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(25.02.2025) The danger with every heart attack, regardless of the type of symptoms, is immediate cardiac arrest. Sad fact: women are almost twice as likely to die from their first heart attack as men, says an expert.

Severe pain that radiates into the arms, back or neck, a massive feeling of tightness in the chest, a severe burning sensation in the heart area and cold, pale skin are usually typical signs of a heart attack - especially in men. "In women, on the other hand, the infarction often manifests itself unspecifically through nausea and vomiting, exhaustion, pain in the upper abdomen and back and shortness of breath. More often than in male patients, chest pain may be completely absent in female patients with heart attacks," says Prof. Dr. Dirk Westermann, Medical Director of the Department of Cardiology and Angiology at the University Heart Center Freiburg - Bad Krozingen at the Freiburg University Medical Center. This is why infarctions in women are sometimes not detected in time.

The risk increases in women over 60

It has long been disproved that heart attacks are a purely male disease. However, women are better protected than men until the menopause. But as hormone production decreases, so does the protection. This is why cardiovascular diseases only occur more frequently in women from around the age of 60. Men, on the other hand, are at increased risk ten years earlier. However, in industrialized countries, heart attacks are one of the most common causes of death in women from the age of 35 - far more frequently than breast cancer, for example. "Patients of both sexes with type 2 diabetes have a significantly increased risk of heart attack," warns Westermann. Other possible causes include smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, lack of exercise and obesity.

Affected women take their symptoms less seriously

In women in particular, the symptoms of a heart attack are often not diagnosed quickly enough and valuable time is lost. Those affected also take their symptoms less seriously. They are often embarrassed - and women are also far more afraid of developing cancer than suffering a heart attack. "If a woman experiences a previously unknown and very severe feeling of pressure or tightness or pain in the left shoulder area, you have to think about a heart attack," says Westermann. In this case, there is not a minute to lose and the emergency services should be called on the Europe-wide emergency number 112. Anyone present should provide first aid immediately.

First aid for cardiac arrest:

"Check. Call. Press"

1. check whether the person is still breathing

2. call the emergency services using the Europe-wide emergency number 112.

3. press firmly and at least 100 times per minute in the middle of the chest and do not stop until help arrives.

Detailed instructions on resuscitation at www.einlebenretten.de

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