(American Heart Association/ Medical XPress) — Women who are menopausal by the age of 40 had a 40% increased risk of developing coronary heart disease over their lifetime compared to women who did not go through early menopause, according to preliminary research to be presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle & Cardiometabolic Health Conference 2021.
Coronary heart disease is a very common type of heart disease in which arteries around the heart become blocked due to a buildup of plaque, which develops over time. Left undetected and untreated, women can suffer chest pain, a heart attack or even sudden cardiac arrest.
“We know from previous research that women who experience premature menopause are more likely to develop heart disease over the short-term. However, we don’t fully understand their long-term risk. No past studies have looked at this,” said lead study author Priya M. Freaney, M.D., a third-year cardiology fellow at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. (…)