Welcome to my podcast. I am Doctor Warrick Bishop, and I want to help you to live as well as possible for as long as possible. I’m a practising cardiologist, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and the creator of The Healthy Heart Network. I have over 20 years as a specialist cardiologist and a private practice of over 10,000 patients.
In this podcast, Dr. Warrick Bishop, a cardiologist, discusses heart health, particularly focusing on conditions affecting women, with interventional cardiologist Dr. Fiona Foo. They explore angina and ischemia in women who have non-obstructive coronary artery disease, explaining that many women experience chest pain without visible blockages in large arteries. This phenomenon, referred to as Anoca (angina with non-obstructive coronary arteries) and Inoca (ischemia with non-obstructive coronary arteries), highlights issues at the microvascular level that are often overlooked.
Dr. Foo emphasizes the importance of recognizing these conditions to improve diagnosis and management, especially since they are more prevalent in women. They also touch on coronary artery spasm and the need for functional angiograms to diagnose microvascular dysfunction. The conversation extends to spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), a condition more common in younger women, which can mimic heart attacks. Both doctors stress the need for increased awareness of these issues to prevent misdiagnoses and improve patient outcomes. The episode concludes with a call to action for listeners to assess their heart health risks and seek further information.
Takeaways:
- Dr. Warrick Bishop, a cardiologist, emphasizes the importance of understanding heart health to prevent heart disease, which is prevalent in Australia.
- The podcast features Dr. Fiona Foo, an interventional cardiologist, who discusses unique cardiovascular issues affecting women, particularly angina without blocked arteries.
- Angina can occur due to non-obstructive coronary artery disease, especially in women, where arteries may be less than 50% blocked, leading to conditions known as Anoca (angina with non-obstructive coronary arteries) and Inoca (ischemia with non-obstructive coronary arteries).
- A useful analogy is provided, comparing coronary artery blockages to traffic congestion, illustrating how small vessel issues can impede blood flow even without major blockages.
- Coronary microvascular dysfunction and spasms are significant contributors to angina in women, which are often undetectable in standard angiograms.
- Functional angiograms can diagnose these conditions, allowing for tailored treatments that differ from those for traditional coronary artery disease.
- Common risk factors for these conditions include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity, and psychological stress, similar to those for general cardiovascular disease.
- There is a noted relationship between microvascular dysfunction and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, particularly in women.
- Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is another condition primarily affecting younger women, where the arterial lining can shear and impede blood flow, often occurring post-pregnancy.
- Awareness and recognition of these conditions are crucial, as many patients with recurrent chest pain may be misdiagnosed when their angiograms appear normal, impacting their quality of life.
Australia, like the rest of the western world, has a heart problem.
Over 9 million people around the world die from heart disease every year.
Every 10 minutes, someone in Australia suffers a heart attack. And 21 lives are lost daily because of it.
The devastating fact in all of this is…
Almost every one of those cases could have been prevented.
This podcast is for anyone who wants to improve their health literacy and gain information to help them make the best decisions about their risk of heart attack, their cholesterol, blood pressure, risk of diabetes, weight loss and general health. Join me on my personal mission journey to prevent Heart Attack on a global scale. If you like this podcast, I would be honoured by a 5-star review and appreciate if you let your friends and family know about this podcast; you may even save the life of someone you love!
Are You at Risk of a Sudden Heart Attack? How Healthy is Your Heart? Really?
Heart disease is the #1 killer in the Western World. In Australia, someone dies every 28 minutes from heart disease. That’s 51 people a day. In the US, someone has a heart attack every 40 SECONDS! Fortunately, many heart attacks are preventable. However, regular exercise and eating healthy are no guarantee you won’t succumb to this silent killer.
- 94% of Australians have at least One Risk Factor for heart disease.
- 59% of Australians have been Touched by heart disease.
- Yet only 3% of Australians have had a Full Heart-Health Assessment in the past 12 months.
Do the free heart check today at www.virtualheartcheck.com.au
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Do You Want to Improve Your Heart’s Health and Reduce Your Risk of Suffering a Heart Attack? Join The Healthy Heart Network For Only $5 Lifetime Access (Valued at over $55)!
The Healthy Heart Network is designed to help members:
- understand the present state of their heart’s health
- recognise their current level of risk of suffering a heart attack
- Learn the positive steps they can take to improve their situation
Visit https://healthyheartnetwork.com/ and click on the JOIN THE FAMILY BUTTON
