OBGYN Specialist Marc A. Wilson, MD, Warns Women of Cardiovascular Risk Factors
An OB/GYN program is helping educate women on the dangers of cardiovascular disease, the number one fatal disease for women. OBGYN specialist Marc A. Wilson, MD makes it a priority to educate their patients on this life-threatening disease.
NEW YORK, NY, June 05, 2012
SCAI's Women in Innovations (WIN) and Abbott's Women's Heart Health Initiative have created an OB/GYN screening program to help educate and prevent cardiovascular disease in women by bringing screenings tools and information to the gynecologist's office, according to a news article by The Wall Street Journal. The program discovered that one in nearly eight women has three or more cardiac risk factors, but do not know it, according to a study presented at the SCAI 2012 Scientific Sessions. OBGYN specialist Daniel P. McDonald, MD, and OBGYN specialist Marc A. Wilson, MD, said that it is imperative OB/GYNS discuss cardiovascular disease with their patients, something they always enforce at their practice, OB/GYN Specialists."Gynecologists have a pivotal role to play in women's cardiovascular health, and they are enthusiastic about the program," said Dr. Sudhir Mungee, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Peoria. "The keys to the success of this initiative are collaboration among physicians and empowerment of women with knowledge."
OBGYN specialist Daniel P. McDonald, MD, and OBGYN specialist Marc A. Wilson, MD, agreed with Mungee, adding that many of their patients know very little about cardiovascular disease. Many of them are more familiar with breast cancer, another deadly disease that affects women across the country.
"Many of our patients don't understand that heart disease is the number one killer of women," Dr. Wilson said. "Our patients come in being very aware of breast cancer, however, breast cancer deaths pale in comparison to those caused by cardiovascular disease. Many OB/GYN's fail to discuss this very important aspect of their patient's health with their patients."
Although breast cancer is prevalent in the United States, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death among women. Women ages 35 to 44 are at the highest risk with the rate of cardiovascular death increasing by 1 percent every year. Mungee added that "obstetrical risk factors are often the first sign that a woman will be at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease in her 40s and 50s when she goes through menopause and loses hormonal protection."
OBGYN specialist Daniel P. McDonald, MD, and OBGYN specialist Marc A. Wilson, MD, believe that the OB/GYN screening program is a wonderful tool for patients and doctors. However, they strongly encourage all OB/GYNs to not rely solely on the program to educate patients on cardiovascular disease.
"At each annual exam, I discuss cardiovascular health with my patients," Dr. Wilson said.
ABOUT:
OBGYN specialists Drs. Daniel P. McDonald and Marc A. Wilson manage OB/GYN Specialists, a pro-life medical facility in Texas. The facility provides prevention of loss of life services, helps mothers and their children, and meets the needs of individual patients. To learn more about OB/GYN Specialists, go to www.pro-lifeobgyn.com.