Women’s Cardiology Care

We counsel and treat women who have significant risk factors for heart disease such as diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipemia, a current or prior smoking history and sedentary lifestyle, prior chemotherapy for breast cancer and prior radiation to the chest wall (such as include radiation for lymphoma or breast cancer). Menopause can further heighten these risks.

Our team offers offer screening tests, including cholesterol screenings, stress testing, calcium scoring to evaluate future risks and offer counseling. We also treat women who have existing heart condition during pregnancy, to reduce their future risk of developing cardiovascular complications.

Ochsner Health’s Women’s Cardiovascular Clinic counsels and treats women who have significant risk factors for heart disease. These risk factors include:

• Diabetes
• Hypertension (high blood pressure)
• High cholesterol and high fats (hyperlipidemia)
• Current or prior smoking history
• Family history of premature heart disease (heart disease in men <50 and Women < 60 yrs. of age)
• Prior chemotherapy for breast cancer, or Lymphoma, Multiple Myeloma and/or radiation of the chest wall
• Menopause
• Presence of inflammatory diseases such as Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Pregnant patients with prior history of heart disease such as born with abnormalities of the heart chambers and valves
• High blood pressure and DM during pregnancy

At Ochsner Health, we realize the importance of catering our care to treat the individual, and we are proud to be a part of a multidisciplinary team of physicians and medical professionals who have your best interest – and health – in mind.

Ochsner Women’s Heart Clinic is staffed by two fellowship-trained, board-certified cardiologists relentless about giving women what they need to fight back against heart disease. We are here to take care of you and empower you to take care of yourself. At Ochsner, we understand a women’s heart at every age of her life.

Your team at Ochsner will review your medical history, complete a risk assessment, perform an initial cardiac exam, and order diagnostic testing, if needed. Plus, as part of the region’s leading multi-specialty health system, we have access to specialists and subspecialists and can consult with these experts on your behalf. Nutrition, fitness and mental health professionals may all be a part of your care team.

Meet Our Team

Our team diagnoses, treats, manages and educates our patients on a wide variety of cardiovascular conditions including:

• Primary prevention (Counseling and treatment) for women with multiple cardiac risk factors (Diabetes, hypertension, current smoking, family history of premature heart disease, high cholesterol, presence of autoimmune disease and sedentary lifestyle)
• Arrhythmia (palpitations)
• Chest pain from a blocked heart artery (Angina)
• Chest pain related to microvascular dysfunction and coronary spasm
• Heart complications from high blood pressure during pregnancy (Preeclampsia)
• Heart complications from preexisting congenital heart disease during pregnancy
• Heart complications from prior breast cancer chemotherapy and radiation
• Heart failure during pregnancy (Peripartum Cardiomyopathy)
• Peripheral artery disease
• Spontaneous coronary artery dissection
• Stress-induced cardiomyopathy (broken heart syndrome)

At Ochsner, we will help you make healthy lifestyle changes that can go far in preventing or slowing the progression of heart disease. We’ll give you strategies to deal with high blood pressure and high cholesterol, ideas on how to incorporate exercise into your busy schedule, a plan for healthy eating, help to quit smoking ­­– even techniques to deal with stress. We treat the whole woman – not just the disease.

Risk factors of cardiovascular disease in women include:

• High blood pressure
• High LDL cholesterol
• Smoking
• Diabetes
• Obesity
• History of breast cancer
• Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL)
• Poor diet
• Inactivity
• Excessive alcohol use

When a man has a heart attack, he might experience crushing chest pain, cold sweats, nausea, upper body pain, shortness of breath, nausea, and dizziness, but none of these may happen in a woman.

A woman might experience pressure in her chest, pain in the arms, back, neck, jaw, or stomach, and shortness of breath without chest discomfort.

It is important to know that these symptoms can take place any time ­– when you are resting, exercising or in times of stress. It’s also common for women not to have any symptoms at all. Research shows that about 64% of women who die suddenly of coronary heart disease have no previous symptoms. When there are symptoms, however, here is what they might mean:

Heart Attack

• Chest pain or discomfort
• Upper back pain
• Heartburn/indigestion
• Nausea/vomiting
• Upper body discomfort
• Extreme fatigue
• Shortness of breath

Arrhythmia (heart palpitations)

• A fluttering or racing feeling (tachycardia) in the chest
• A slow heartbeat (bradycardia)
• Chest pain
• Shortness of breath
• Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
• Sweating
• Fainting or near fainting

Heart Failure

• Shortness of breath
• Fatigue
• Swelling of the feet/ankles/legs/abdomen

Stroke

• Sudden weakness
• Paralysis
• Numbness of the face/arms/legs (especially on one side of the body)
• Confusion
• Difficulty speaking or understanding
• Vision problems in one or both eyes
• Shortness of breath
• Dizziness
• Balance and coordination problems
• Loss of consciousness
• Sudden and severe headache