Mater Private Network Hosts Inaugural Women’s Heart Summit to Highlight Women’s Cardiac Care
Mater Private Network hosted the inaugural Women’s Heart Summit this weekend (24th January), bringing together leading national and international experts to address the unique challenges of cardiovascular disease in women.
Organised by Mater Private Network and the Cardiovascular Research Institute (CVRI) Dublin, and supported by the Irish Cardiac Society and Irish Heart Foundation, the Summit welcomed over 350 cardiologists, GPs and other healthcare professionals, to share best practice and the latest research across a range of women-specific cardiovascular specialties.
The Summit discussions focused on improving awareness, diagnosis, and treatment of heart disease in women, an area where significant gaps in care and outcomes still exist. The expert-led sessions explored advances in treatment and guidelines, and evolving models of care.
A highlight of the day was a keynote address from Prof. Roxana Mehran, Mount Sinai Hospital, USA, a renowned interventional cardiologist, clinical researcher, and advocate for gender equity in medicine, and President-Elect of the American College of Cardiology. Prof Mehran presented a report from the Lancet Commission: ‘Heart Disease in Women: Under-recognised, Under-diagnosed, Under-treated’, outlining the systemic challenges facing women globally in accessing equal care, and identifying the key changes needed to address this gap in treatment, and improve cardiac outcomes for women.
Another highlight of the day was from Prof. Julie De Backer, Genetic Cardiologist at Ghent University Hospital in Belgium, who spoke on the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Guidelines for the Management of Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) and Pregnancy. Prof. De Backer emphasised the different ways in which men and women experience cardiovascular disease, with variations in clinical presentation and response to treatment that must be reflected in clinical practice. She highlighted that prevention remains the single most effective way of managing CVD, offering far greater benefit than treatment. She further stressed the vital role of education in empowering women to recognise risk factors, understand symptoms and adopt healthy lifestyles - for their own health and that of their children.
Further sessions examined key topics including heart failure in women, spontaneous coronary artery disease, breast cancer therapy-related cardiotoxicity in women, and heart health during menopause.
Speaking at the summit, Dr Róisín Colleran, Consultant Cardiologist at Mater Private Network, said, “Heart disease in women has been a neglected area for a long time, despite being the number one killer of women in Ireland and worldwide. Women are often under-recognised, under-diagnosed and under-treated, and do not always receive the same guideline-directed care as men. This is partly due to gaps in our understanding of heart disease in women, gender bias, differences in how symptoms present, and the under-representation of women in cardiovascular research. This Women’s Heart Summit was created to shine a spotlight on these disparities and to ensure that women’s heart health gains its rightful place at the centre of clinical practice, research and education.
“By bringing together experts from Ireland and across the world, the Summit aims to drive progress in how cardiovascular disease in women is prevented, recognised and treated, translating evidence, education and innovation into improved outcomes for women in Ireland and beyond.”
Mater Private Network is a leader in cardiovascular care in Ireland and is committed to advancing excellence and innovation in cardiac care through high-quality educational initiatives such as the Women’s Heart Summit.
A full recording of the event will be available to medical professionals at Medcafe.ie and materprivate.ie.