CRF summit to examine importance of gender in cardiovascular disease research

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Nov 4 2011Cardiovascular Research Foundation

Summit sponsored by the Cardiovascular Research Foundation will be held on Dec. 9, 2011

Research has demonstrated that there are significant disparities in heart health between men and women. A panel, sponsored by the Cardiovascular Research Foundation (CRF) will examine these issues:

Is there gender bias in diagnoses?
Are there physiological factors at play?
Why do women often not fare as well as men given the same treatments and therapies?
What do women need to know to monitor their own health effectively?

"In Pursuit of Excellence: Improving Cardiovascular Outcomes in Women" will be held on Friday Dec. 9, 2011. The meeting, which will bring together top national experts in research, academia, and health policy to examine the importance of gender in cardiovascular disease research, will take place at The Princeton Club in New York City. Roxana Mehran, MD will Chair this important meeting. Dr. Mehran is Professor of Medicine and Director of Interventional Cardiovascular Research and Clinical Trials at the Zena and Michael A. Weiner Cardiovascular Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. She also serves as the Chief Scientific Officer of the CRF Clinical Trial Center.

The Summit will feature a keynote address on the current state of heart disease in women by Cindy L. Grines, MD, Vice President of Academic and Clinical Affairs of the Heart and Vascular Institute at the Detroit Medical Center.

"Too few people realize the staggering toll cardiovascular disease has on women," said Dr. Grines. "Over the past 40 years, there has been a marked reduction in U.S. heart disease deaths in men, but reductions in women have continued to lag behind. More needs to be done to provide women with the knowledge and tools they need to take positive action to reduce their risk of heart disease, as well as to drive the discovery and investigation of new and innovative therapies for women."

"We are very excited to host a Summit on such an important issue as women's heart health," said Dr. Mehran. "Our goal is to examine current prevention, treatment, and key research issues to collectively identify opportunities and recommendations that will lead to improved cardiovascular outcomes in women."

Drs. Grines and Mehran will be joined by a renowned panel of experts to discuss the following topics:

Advances in Heart Failure Treatments in Women: Has Device Therapy Made a Difference?
Deborah D. Ascheim, MD
Mount Sinai Medical Center

The American Heart Association's Efforts to Fight Heart Disease in Women
Mary Ann McLaughlin, MD
Mount Sinai Medical Center
American Heart Association, NY Chapter

Inclusion of Women in Clinical Trials: How Can We Improve This?
Karen A. Hicks, MD
U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Patient and Caretaker (Family) Education
Lori Mosca, MD, MPH, PhD
Columbia University Medical Center