Knowledge and Perception of Coronary Artery Disease in High-Risk Women

Abstract

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the leading cause of death in America and kills more women each year than all other cancers combined. While women’s level of awareness of heart disease has increased, they often do not perceive their risk of heart disease accurately, nor do they understand the importance of adopting heart-healthy behaviors to reduce risk. Objective: By implementing a combination of counseling from a health care provider and computer-based tailored education, this project aimed to test the effectiveness of using the Go Red for Women™ Heart CheckUp as an educational intervention for high-risk women to increase the accurate perception of risk, improve CAD knowledge, and increase intent to make behavioral changes. Methods and Discussion: Twenty-one women with a history of CAD, myocardial infarction, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, or coronary artery bypass grafting completed the Go Red for Women™ Heart CheckUp tool and rated their perception of risk from CAD and belief that they could change their risk both before and after the tool. There was an increase in perception of risk and belief in change after the tool. Qualitative data showed participants were educated about CAD. Conclusion: The Go Red for Women™ Heart Check-up tool was shown to be useful in educating high-risk women about their cardiac risk and in promoting heart-healthy behaviors.