While many of the risk factors associated with this deadly disease are controllable, the condition is often diagnosed late, and many women are unaware of its symptoms and warning signs. Delayed diagnosis and treatment unnecessarily increase morbidity and mortality rates among women, especially African American women. OWL's goal is to make certain that every woman, every health care professional, every caregiver and every policymaker is aware of the serious threat posed by hear disease to midlife and older women and to motivate them to take action to prevent and treat this disease. Heart, or cardiovascular disease is a condition in which insufficient amounts of oxygen rich blood flow to your heart, causing the heart muscle to deteriorate and die. The usual cause of this condition is a blockage in the coronary arteries, due to an accumulation of a fatty substance called cholesterol.
Heart disease is the leading cause of hospitalization and death among midlife and older women.
The condition increases with age and is more widespread among African-American women than among white women. One in nine women between the ages of 45 and 64 has some form of heart disease. One in three women age 65 and older has heart disease. Heart disease was the leading diagnosis for women age 45 and older who were discharged from hospitals in 1991. Women are the victims of half of all fatal heart attacks each year.