SAN ANTONIO — All women are susceptible to heart disease, and there are many symptoms of cardiovascular disease that are unique to women.
"I'm a mom, so I wanted to make sure I would be around for my kids and my family for as long as I can be," Michelle Santana said. That's one of the reasons why the mother of two took preventative measures to keep up with her heart health. Family history was another.
"My grandmother had heart disease, my mom had heart disease, and my mom actually had to have a procedure, and have bypass surgery, so it is something I've always been afraid of," she said.
Heart disease is also the number one killer in women. Only half of women recognize the disease as the number one cause of death in women. About one in every four deaths in women are caused by heart disease. And two-thirds of women who die suddenly from coronary heart disease have no previous symptoms.
Santana also had no symptoms last summer, but when her doctor got the results from a calcium score test and nuclear stress test on her heart, she called Santana and told her to go to the cath lab immediately. Her emotions were rattled. "Scared, nervous. I didn't know what to expect. Those were my first thoughts. I found out that I was in trouble and I didn't even know that I was in trouble."
Santana had a 99 percent blockage in her left anterior descending artery. One more percent could have meant death. She said, "Now I have a stent in my heart, but now I know that I can monitor it with my doctors and keep track of it."
She urges all women, especially those with a family history, to get checked early. "Go make time to go get checked it's very important," added Santana.
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