Coronary Heart Disease in Women

One hundred women with classical coronary heart disease were studied in an attempt to identify etiological factors. Three dominant factors were hypertension, cigarette smoking, and hypercholesterolemia. Cigarette smoking and hypertension were present together or separately in 80 to 90% of the patients. Four patients were diabetics; six had grossly abnormal serum cholesterol levels; and there was one case each of associated myxedema, aortic stenosis, and postoperative hypotension. Comments are made about the role of family history, obesity, hypercholesterolemia, abnormal glucose tolerance, exercise and dietary experience, and the influence of the menopause. It is believed that the proper control of hypertension in the population and the elimination of cigarette smoking would cause an appreciable or even dramatic reduction in the incidence of precocious and middle-aged coronary heart disease in women.