Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), which is caused by a tear in the lining of an artery, affects mostly fit, healthy, younger women who don’t have the typical risk factors associated with heart attacks.
Jacqueline Saw, an interventional cardiologist at Vancouver General Hospital and an associate professor at UBC’s Faculty of Medicine, has become one of the country’s leading experts on SCAD. She says that the condition is likely far more common than medical professionals or the public realize. Saw is leading a study of women under age 55 whose heart attacks aren’t linked with typical cardiovascular risk factors.
Georgia Straight, Wed May 30 2012, By: Gail Johnson, Link to full text