Many women don't recognize heart attack

NEW HAVEN, Conn., May 2 (UPI) -- Many women under age 55 don't recognize female heart attack signs and expect the "elephant on the chest" and shortness of breath, a U.S. study said.

Lead author Judith Lichtman of the Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn., studied 30 women who had suffered a heart attack, at an average age 48, who talked about their experiences in great detail.

"We found that most failed to connect their symptoms with a heart condition, commonly misattributing them to fatigue, indigestion, stress or overexertion," Lichtman said in a statement.

"We learned that many of these women had no idea that they were at risk for heart disease and were unaware that their symptoms could be connected with a heart problem."

Many of the women called their physician and were given an appointment. Some experienced long delays at a hospital because they were thought to have non-cardiac conditions.

The finding were presented at the American Heart Association's forum on cardiovascular disease and stroke.

A National Institute of Health study found the symptoms most commonly reported in women with heart attacks are unusual fatigue, sleep disturbance and shortness of breath. Fewer than 30 percent reported chest pain or discomfort prior to their heart attack.