Diabetic women more prone to heart diseases; Dr. Sarwal

Chandigarh, November 15, 2014:  As many as 300 people attended a free diabetes check up camp and a health seminar on diabetes prevention at Pushpac Society , Sector 49 here today. The camp program was organised by Max Super Speciality Hospital (MSSH), Mohali to mark World Diabetes Day .

Addressing the seminar, Dr. Virendar Sarwal, Director & Head, Cardio Thoracic and Vascular Surgery (CTVS), MSSH said that among both men and women, diabetes was one of the strongest cardiovascular risk factors. Epidemiological studies have shown that people with diabetes have double the chance of getting cardiovascular disease than people without diabetes.

“Men were generally prone to heart disease in their 40s or 50s, much before the women. But for diabetic women, the cardiovascular risk occurred much earlier. Diabetes would take away much of the protection the premenopausal women normally get from estrogens. Diabetes increased women risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke much more earlier than men.”

Dr Sarwal further said that women with diabetes were almost 3 times more likely to develop heart disease. In the "pre-diabetes" phase, women would tend to have higher risk factors and a worse metabolic profile then men, including weight gain. This would mean more cardiovascular risk. The women should get themselves screened earlier and more often in case of pre-diabetes.

It was important to recognize cardiovascular disease in women. The symptoms were different. For instance, half of women who have heart attacks would never have chest pain. They were instead likely to have heartburn, nausea, tiredness, or trouble breathing, remarked Dr Sarwal.

Talking on prevention of ‘Gestational diabetes during pregnancy’, Dr Seema Wadhwa, Sr. Consultant, Gynaecology, MSSH said that concept of ‘Gestational Diabetes was defined as diabetes that was discovered during pregnancy. It resolved after delivery, but might recur in subsequent pregnancies. The lifetime risk for developing Type-2 diabetes was 30%.

Indications for detection of diabetes in pregnant women included family history of diabetes, glucose in urine sample, history of unexplained miscarriages, history of large baby. To prevent excess spontaneous abortion and congenital malformations in infants of diabetic mothers, diabetes care and education must begin before conception, pointed out Dr Wadhwa.

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