It is known that, in comparison with men, women with cardiovascular disease are undertreated, including drug treatment. This aspect was less studied with respect to drugs used for secondary prevention.
Methods: In an urban Romanian community there was studied a representative sample of 150 postmenopausal women with cardiovascular disease (62.7% of them with ischemic heart disease-IHD). We considered the secondary prevention by drugs. The results were compared with those registered in a similar sample of 160 men aged >55 years with cardiovascular disease (68.1% of them with IHD). The study was carried out using general practitioner's files.
Results: According to the literature, there were considered as preventive drugs: antiplatelet agents, statins, beta blockers and ACEI. Aspirin was used in 56.4% of the women and 72.5% of the men (p<0.05), ACEI in 69.1% and 79.8 % (p>0.05), beta blockers in 69.1% and 74.3 % (p>0.05) and statins in 48.9% and 48.6% (p>0.05). The results show that antiplatelet drugs are underused in ischemic patients, but especially in women. The maximum use of preventive drugs in women was registered after acute myocardial infarction (beta blockers 85.7%, statins 50%, aspirin 60.7%, ACEI 75%). In turn, the myocardial revascularization by CABG and PCI is low in both groups, but much less in women than in men: CABG 1.1% in women, 4.6% in men p>0.05, PCI 5.3% in women and 13.8% in men p<0.05.
Conclusion: In postmenopausal women with ischemic heart disease the secondary prevention by drugs is similar with that applied in men, except aspirin and ACEI, which are underused.