Nissi S. Suppogu, M.D., Medical Director of Women’s Heart Center at the MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute at Long Beach Medical Center
(Bruce Hershey)
Heart disease is the number-one killer of women, with over 60 million women (44%) in the U.S. living with some form of heart disease. There is one woman dying from heart disease every minute. The MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute is on a mission to bridge the gap between understanding and managing heart conditions in women through the Women’s Health Center at Long Beach Medical Center. It is the sole women’s heart center in the South L.A. and North Orange County regions that provides specialized testing for some very specific cardiovascular conditions more often seen in women.
“Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women, and yet studies show that cardiovascular care for women is suboptimal when compared to men with similar conditions,” says Nissi Suppogu, M.D., medical director, Women’s Heart Center, MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute at Long Beach Medical Center. “Women are less likely to receive recommended treatment by national guidelines and often not taken seriously, leading to recurrent hospitalizations. Even though awareness of cardiovascular disease in women has increased, there is still a lot of work to do.”
Heart disease is commonly associated with obstructive disease in the larger coronary arteries. However, over 50% of women who experience chest pain and undergo invasive procedures, such as coronary angiograms, do not exhibit any obstructive disease. Instead, many women are affected by microvascular disease, which involves the smaller blood vessels. This condition is frequently misdiagnosed or overlooked because most diagnostic and invasive tests for heart disease are designed to identify blockages in the larger coronary arteries.
“Research has shown microvascular disease could be a precursor for heart failure and early progression of heart disease,” says Dr. Suppogu. “Treating microvascular disease is equally as important as treating obstructive coronary artery disease of the heart.”
Women with heart disease can present not just with chest pain but also have additional symptoms like:
- Chest pain – pressure/dullness/heaviness/tightness in the chest, lasting more than a few seconds
- Chest pain radiating to the neck, jaw, left arm or back
- Progressive fatigue/lack of energy
- Shortness of breath is associated with exertion
Dr. Suppogu is a fellowship-trained cardiologist, specifically in women’s heart, and has made this her life’s work and mission since losing her mother at a young age to heart disease. She will provide a complete workup and address the unique gender differences in the presentation and diagnosis of heart disease in women. Using her expertise, she can also focus on gender specific risk factors like changes with menopause, pregnancy-related diabetes and hypertension, pre-eclampsia, inflammatory conditions like lupus or rheumatoid arthritis, stress and anxiety that are more common in women. Should Dr. Suppogu suspect microvascular disease, she will perform additional testing that will not only look for obstructive disease in the bigger blood vessels of the heart but will also study the flow and changes in the smaller blood vessels.
“It is important for us to understand that 80% of heart disease is preventable. Women with concerns of heart disease should meet with a cardiologist who has in-depth knowledge of their condition to be educated about their condition and treated appropriately,” says Dr. Suppogu. “Women can be evaluated for existing chronic or acute conditions. They are encouraged to focus on prevention of heart disease at various stages and to even ask for a second opinion from an expert in women’s heart conditions.”
Want to learn more about heart disease in women? Visit memorialcare.org/lbheart.
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