Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Women: Highlights for the Clinician of the 2011 American Heart Association Guidelines

The 2011 Update to the American Heart Association Effectiveness-Based Guidelines for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Women is designed to assist women and health professionals in understanding the cardiovascular disease risk for women and undertaking the most effective preventive interventions. Although coronary heart disease remains the leading cause of mortality for women in the United States, cardiovascular mortality among U.S. women has decreased dramatically each year since 2000, with the decline in mortality being steeper for women than for men. Nonetheless, since 1984, more women than men continue to die annually from cardiovascular disease. Half of the decrement in cardiovascular mortality for women since 2000 reflects the improved management of their established cardiovascular disease; the other half is attributable to reductions in their major coronary risk factors, hence the importance of this prevention guideline.