According to the British Heart Foundation, a woman is 50% more likely than a man to receive the wrong initial diagnosis for a heart attack. As a result, women are less likely than men to receive potentially life saving treatments in a timely way.

The gender inequality surrounding heart health, research and care has attracted media attention following the publication of a recent consensus statement drawn up by 33 experts affiliated with the British Cardiovascular Society. The statement aims to address concerns regarding the discrepancies in heart health between men and women and says women are underdiagnosed, undertreated and under-represented in clinical trials directed at managing strategies for cardiovascular disease (CVD).

The consensus document specifically portrays the sex-related differences in the diagnosis and treatment of each of the major CVD areas and proposes strategies to overcome barriers in diagnosis and treatment for women. The report also calls for further education for GPs and doctors to highlight that “heart disease does not discriminate by sex.”

Concerning statistics show that more than 3.6m women in the UK have heart disease, making it the biggest killer of women. Despite this, women have been historically under-represented in clinical research, including cardiovascular trials. As a result, many diagnostic tests and treatments have been based on data gathered from men.

The issue is, however, not only limited to heart disease. Many conditions that mostly or only affect women have received little to no attention in the medical world including conditions like endometriosis, and autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.

The consensus document aims to raise public awareness about heart health statistics and encourage further research into heart and circulatory diseases in women. There is the possibility that with improved technology and data science and the ability to analyse large numbers of patients, this will give new insights and show the potential for AI-generated algorithms to provide a solution to improve research into women’s health.