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Women are 7.5 times more likely to suffer from Broken Heart Syndrome than men
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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Sudden shock or emotional stress can lead to the development of symptoms of acute myocardial infarction, despite the fact that there may be no visible organic structural changes in the heart muscle. Scientists from Japan were the first to study this problem back in 1990 and called this condition "Broken Heart Syndrome".
Now, researchers from the University of Arkansas (USA) have determined that women suffer from this syndrome more often than men.
The main causes of Broken Heart Syndrome are a sudden surge of hormones and adrenaline, usually associated with emotional stress. In this case, the heart temporarily enlarges, causing symptoms very similar to a heart attack, only without the anatomical damage such as blocked arteries and damage to the heart muscle.
Dr. Abhishek Deshmukh, a cardiologist at the University of Arkansas who has studied women with broken heart syndrome, looked at gender differences in the condition. Using a federal database that included data from about 1,000 hospitals, Deshmukh found 6,229 cases of the syndrome in 2007. Only 11 percent of cases occurred in men. The study also found that older women were 7.5 times more likely than men to develop the syndrome.
In a group of people aged 55, women were 9.5 times more likely to have the syndrome than men. And women over 55 were three times more likely to have it than younger women. The exact reason for the gender disparity is not known. It is possible that men have more adrenaline receptors on their heart cells, making them better able to cope with stress and chemical surges in the body.
The study also showed that in 10% of cases of Broken Heart Syndrome, relapses (repeated cases) of the disease occur, but often the functionality of the heart completely returns to normal without anatomical damage and the need for treatment.