Women Often Experience Myriad Heart Attack Symptoms

Unlike men, women often do not experience the classic symptoms of chest pain during a heart attack. Instead, they may feel less obvious sensations such as pain in the jaw, neck, shoulders or back, stomach discomfort, sudden breathing problems, and even flu-like symptoms, according to a recent study in the Journal of the American Medical Association.


Moreover, women (and men) who are obese, have diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or a family history of heart disease should be especially concerned if they experience these symptoms.

The lesson here, the researchers said, is that women need to be more aggressive in seeking help when they feel the sudden onset of any symptom that affects their daily lives. Women also need to be assertive with their doctor if they feel that a heart attack.