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Open Access 01-03-2010

Noninvasive Assessment of Coronary Artery Disease in Women: What’s Next?

Authors: Lawrence M. Phillips, Jennifer H. Mieres

Published in: Current Cardiology Reports | Issue 2/2010

Abstract

Significant progress in research has been made in the areas of sex-specific aspects of cardiovascular disease. Despite these advances, coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of death of women in the Western world. Over the past decade, the focused research on women at risk for ischemic heart disease has helped to clarify our understanding of some of the sex-specific factors, which are important in detecting CAD. In women, the detection and evaluation of physiologically significant CAD is challenging, especially given that traditional tests designed to detect focal areas of coronary artery stenosis are less sensitive and specific in female patients who have a lower prevalence of obstructive coronary disease, greater burden of symptoms, and a high atherosclerotic burden. In this article, we review the available evidence on the role of contemporary cardiovascular imaging techniques in evaluating ischemic heart disease in women.

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Title: Noninvasive Assessment of Coronary Artery Disease in Women: What’s Next?
Authors: Lawrence M. Phillips
Jennifer H. Mieres
Publication date: 01-03-2010
Publisher: Current Science Inc.
Published in: Current Cardiology Reports / Issue 2/2010
Print ISSN: 1523-3782
Electronic ISSN: 1534-3170
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11886-010-0084-y

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