February is American Heart Month, a time when people are encouraged to focus on their cardiovascular health. Medical experts say heart disease is the leading cause of death among women and is often misdiagnosed.

Dr. Noel Bailey Mertz is an advisor to the nonprofit Women’s Heart Alliance and medical director of the Barbra Streisand Women’s Heart Center at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center at the Smit Heart Institute.
She says the situation is even worse for women of color.

“Women of color in the United States suffer disproportionately from what we call preventable risk factors, and then have just as much difficulty getting recognized, diagnosed, and treated as non-minority women. “It’s a bit of a double whammy because we’re facing a huge battle,” according to Bailey Mertz. ” Once identified and treated, women of color are treated the same as women of color and the same as men. Ironically, detection, diagnosis and treatment work very well. We know everything about heart disease and how to treat it. ”

She said there are symptoms women should be aware of.

“The symptom indicators are the same, so you’ll have all kinds of symptoms: chest discomfort, jaw, arm pain, upset stomach, fatigue.”

The Women’s Heart Alliance recently launched the Get Heart Checked PSA campaign to draw attention to this situation. Visit GetHeartChecked.org for more information.