See related editorial on page 4. Cardiovascular disease is currently the leading cause of
death among American women. Although the majority of these deaths can be attributed to
coronary artery disease, a significant number of women have valvular heart disease. In fact,
of 123,000 patients discharged from the hospital in 1987 with diagnoses of aortic or mitral
valve disease, 71% were women. 1 In addition, more than 60% of heart valve replacement
procedures are performed in women. In contrast, 39% of patients discharged from the …