CHICAGO (January 14, 2007)— Cardiovascular disease is the number-one killer of women. Yet it often goes overlooked. Women are often so busy looking for signs of other diseases like osteoporosis or breast cancer that they dismiss the symptoms of heart disease. They believe it’s strictly a man’s disease. Nothing could be further from the truth! More women die each year of cardiovascular disease than all cancers combined. But here’s the good news: Eighty percent of cardiovascular disease can be prevented!

           Rush University Medical Center (insert website address), in conjunction with the 2BigHearts Foundation, www.2bighearts.org.  is offering a free women’s heart screening  to help women assess their cardiovascular risks. The screening includes an echocardiogram, an ECG, fasting blood sugar, lipid panel, height/weight/blood pressure, evaluation of waist circumference and BMI, health risk assessment, and an exit consultation with a cardiologist or nurse practitioner.

The free women’s heart screenings will be offered at Rush by appointment only on Saturday, February 24 from 7am to 3pm. Space is limited and you must register for an appointment time by calling (312) 942-8378.

The funding for the screening is a combined effort of Rush and the 2BigHearts Foundation. Jim Clarke, of Long Beach, Indiana, established the 2BigHearts after the sudden deaths of his wife and his sister-in-law on the very same day from heart disease. Both Gigi Clarke and Sally Czechanski suffered cardiac trauma as a direct result of cardiomyopathy, or an enlarged heart muscle. Their deaths could have been prevented with early detection.

 The Foundation strives to increase awareness of the issue of heart disease in women.

“By telling the story of my wife and her sister I hope to stress that a similarly tragic scenario is completely avoidable with proper heart health education,” says Clarke. “Had we known about their condition, both Gigi and Sally could have sought treatment that might have saved their lives.”

Some people who develop cardiomyopathy may have no signs or symptoms in the early stages of the disease. As part of the 2BigHearts screening at Rush, participants will undergo an echocardiogram. By using sound waves, or ultrasound, to non-invasively create images of the heart, a doctor can view the size of the heart and its motions as it beats.

Participants will also receive an electrocardiogram (ECG). In this noninvasive test, electrode patches are attached to the skin to measure electrical impulse from the heart. An ECG can show disturbances in the electrical activity of the heart, which may identify abnormal heart rhythms and areas of injury.

The screening will also focus on risk factors for women, which include high blood pressure, high total and LDL cholesterol, low HDL cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, being overweight, being physically inactive, age (55 and older), and family history.

“I tell patients who have several risk factors that they need to know their own bodies and how they feel when there’s nothing wrong,” says cardiologist Anabelle Volgman, M.D. medical director of the Rush Heart Center for Women. “If there is a change, such as unexplained extreme fatigue, it may be a sign that there is something wrong and they should seek medical help,”

Many women ignore symptoms of cardiovascular disease because, unlike the classic severe chest pain men often describe, women’s symptoms tend to be more nonspecific – fatigue, nausea and shortness of breath. Women are urged to call 9-1-1 if there is sudden chest discomfort or extreme fatigue that lasts more than a few minutes.

To reduce your risk for heart disease, Dr. Volgman suggests a heart-healthy diet and regular exercise to help maintain a healthy weight and avoid diabetes. Smokers need to quit. If blood pressure and cholesterol can’t be controlled through diet and exercise along, medications can help. Prevention is important because more women than men die within the first year after a heart attack.

For more information and to make appointments for  the 2BigHearts women’s screening at Rush, call (312) 942-8378.