Women with acute coronary syndrome present quite differently than men

In patients with acute coronary syndrome, men are more likely to present with excessive sweating, or diaphoresis, while women are more likely to present with nausea, according to the results of a study published in the November issue of the American Journal of Cardiology.

Cynthia Arslanian-Engoren, PhD, of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and colleagues evaluated symptom similarities and differences in 1,941 patients with acute coronary syndrome, 35% of them women.

The researchers found that men were more likely to present with chest pain, left arm pain, or diaphoresis, while women were more likely to present with nausea. Both sexes were equally likely to present with dyspnea. After binary logistic regression, the investigators found that women were less likely than men to present with diaphoresis (OR, 0.763), more likely to present with nausea (OR, 1.477), and that gender was not a statistically significant predictor of chest or left arm pain.

Arslanian-Engoren C, Patel A, Fang J, et al. Symptoms of men and women presenting with acute coronary syndromes. Am J Cardiol. 2006;98:1177-1181.