New research aimed at preventing heart disease in women

A new clinical trial is looking at preventing heart disease in premenopausal women who are deemed to be at high risk of heart disease based on the presence of non-traditional cardiovascular risk factors.

Dr Swati Mukherjee is one of only 17 female cardiologists in Australia and New Zealand who specialises in coronary intervention. She is passionate about increasing awareness of women’s cardiovascular issues including the importance of early detection in reducing heart disease in women.

Traditional risk factors for heart disease are well known. These include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, family history, being overweight and being physically inactive. However, recent studies have shown that women can have ‘nontraditional’ risk factors for heart disease. Women who experience pregnancy complications of pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, gestational hypertension, small-for-gestational-age babies and placental abruption are at increased risk of ischaemic heart disease (also known as coronary artery disease). These complications occur in an immense 30% of pregnant women in Australia.

Awareness of these risk factors in the general population and among doctors is very low. However, all of these ‘nontraditional’ risk factors increase the chance of women developing heart disease later in life.

A Women’s Heart Clinic has been established at The Heart Centre, Alfred Hospital and Cabrini Health. These clinics have already been established as an innovative clinical service in Victoria, however no clinical study has yet assessed the effectiveness of a Women’s Heart Clinic on early modification of cardiovascular risk (and hence long-term cardiovascular events) in women with previous vascular complications of pregnancy. The new study is assessing if a Women’s Heart Clinic can reduce the risk of heart disease in women, such as heart attack and stroke, from developing later in life.

The study, run over the last two years, has almost completed its enrolment of 150 participants across three centres in Melbourne

(Alfred Health, Cabrini Health and Outreach at Dandenong).

As the Principal Investigator at Cabrini, Dr Mukherjee has contributed substantially, recruiting almost a third of the women to the study at Cabrini. The study has many promising outcomes, from helping to reduce the cardiovascular risk of the women participating, helping treat other women in the future and determining if a healthcare service specifically designed to help women is helping to prevent heart disease.

Dr Mukherjee said of the research “Women worry about cancer and die of heart disease! This study will empower women to recognise their cardiovascular disease risk and by providing early intervention it will improve cardiovascular health outcomes across their life course.”

50 women suffer a heart attack every day

Recognition of interventional cardiology excellence

In May 2022, Dr Mukherjee was awarded a prestigious FSCAI Fellowship by the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI). SCAI is the leading non-profit medical society in the USA, representing invasive and interventional cardiology. Only a few FSCAIs are awarded to interventional cardiologists from around the world each year. They are recognised as a mark of excellence, and serve as a prestigious ranking of interventional cardiologists. Nominated by peers and seniors in the cardiology field, FSCAI fellows are recognised as having ‘mastery over their art and practicing with high ethical standards’. Dr Mukherjee is the first female Australian cardiologist to be awarded a FSCAI, and one of only a few cardiologists from Australia to hold the award.

Only highly experienced members who have met performance standards established by SCAI, and who have garnered excellent peer recommendations, can achieve the status of FSCAI. Being a Fellow of SCAI puts Dr Mukherjee among the most notable cardiologists across the globe.