Percutaneous coronary intervention in women.

Cardiovascular disease is currently the leading cause of death in women in the United States, but many women underestimate this risk. The treatment of coronary syndromes with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has increased steadily in the past decade, but women referred for PCI have a different profile of demographic features and clinical presentation than do their male counterparts. Concern has been raised about sex discrepancy in referral of women for invasive cardiology procedures. This may have resulted from the outcomes of initial studies of balloon angioplasty, which demonstrated decreased success and increased risk of angioplasty in women compared with men. However, more recent data have shown no sex difference in outcomes with contemporary PCI practices. Additionally, primary PCI for acute myocardial infarction in women is associated with improved mortality in women when compared to thrombolytic therapy. This review will examine the sex differences in demographics and outcomes of women undergoing PCI.