German researchers say that there is no gender difference in the outcome when people are treated after heart attack.

It's important to restore the blood supply to the heart muscle as soon as possible after a heart attack. This can be done by angioplasty - which involves propping open a blocked artery - or by drugs (or a combination of the two). There's been doubt, however, as to whether gender could be a factor in the outcome. Some studies seem to suggest that maybe women do less well.

In this new study, a group comprising 502 women and 1435 men were offered treatment after a heart attack on a equal basis. The women were, on the whole, older and more likely to have complicating conditions such as diabetes or hypertension. Yet the outcomes were similar between the men and the women. If you correct the outcome for the age factor, this means that women stand to do better if offered treatment to restore the blood supply after a heart attack. In other words, gender should not be a factor when deciding on treatments like angioplasty.

Source

Journal of the American Medical Association January 9 2002