A new study from the University of Pennsylvania, published last week, has found that women with Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS) are four times more likely to develop cardiovascular disease. PMOS (recently renamed from Polycystic Ovary Syndrome or PCOS) affects an estimated one in eight women around the UK. Per the research, the elevated risk of heart disease persisted even after accounting for other cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure and diabetes.
Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women globally. But despite that, leading experts say that women in the UK are dying “unnecessarily” from heart disease. This is, in part, because heart disease is still seen as a “man’s disease”, with women largely underrepresented in clinical trials. As a result, the treatments that emerged are primarily tested for and catering to men’s bodies.
This confirmed connection between PMOS and cardiovascular risk is part of the push-back against the underdiagnosis and undertreatment of women for cardiovascular disease. Here, cardiologists Dr Francesco Lo Monaco and Dr Ali Khavandi explain why five conditions and experiences (pregnancy, menopause, autoimmune diseases, PMOS and type 2 diabetes) can elevate a woman’s risk of heart disease and how to counter it.
