‘I would’ve died’: A Google search told Fiona she wasn’t having a heart attack - adding one word changed everything

Fiona Katauskas’ heart attack was nothing like the dramatic heart-clutching moments you see in the movies, so when she felt breathless, dizzy and sweaty while exercising at home on a Sunday morning last year she thought she caught COVID.

Even after collapsing on the floor and going in and out of consciousness, the Sydney political cartoonist’s symptoms weren’t what many of us think of as heart attack related.

A numb right arm seemed more like a heart attack symptom, but a Google search appeared to rule that out, so the 55-year-old went back to bed not realising her heart was giving out.

“I thought I was tired and sleeping, but I was actually just going unconscious. Then I woke up a few hours later with my neck and jaw just completely locked up, and I thought, ‘Hang on a second, that is something I've definitely seen in heart attacks’,” she told nine.com.au.

Katauskas tried another Google search, but this time added one crucial detail.

“So then I Googled ‘women + heart attacks’, and it said, ’You can have numbness or pain in your left arm and women can have it in their right arm – women can have all these different symptoms.”

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More convinced it could be a heart attack but worried she might be “making a fuss”, Katauskas called an Uber instead of an ambulance. Seconds after getting to the front desk of her local hospital’s emergency department she was rushed away for treatment.

“I said, “Look, you know, I’m not sure if I’m just overreacting, but this happened and this happened,” and they went, ‘Get in a wheelchair, get in straight away.’ There was no waiting for three to five hours, they put me straight through, and then I collapsed again in the hospital and fell out of the wheelchair, and then they said, ‘Oh yes, you have had a heart attack,’” she said.

Katauskas was given a stent the next day and informed she had a genetic cholesterol disorder that resulted in her coronary artery becoming 90 per cent blocked. She’s now on medication for her heart and to keep her cholesterol levels under control.

The 56-year-old is aware how close she came to death. Had she known how different heart attack symptoms in women can be and what they are she would’ve been to hospital much earlier. It didn’t help that the information she needed was hard to find and so specific to men.

“I definitely would have died if I hadn't gone to hospital,” she said.

Katauskas isn’t alone, a Heart Foundation survey in 2025 found that many people don’t know how symptoms differ between men and women and what these symptoms are. 

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Fortunately, the medical community has released a new global definition of heart attack that takes these differences into account. Professor Hosen Kiat, cardiologist and co-founder of TAIK Health, told nine.com.au that the Fifth Universal Definition of Myocardial Infarction will help with the diagnosis of heart attacks.

“It places more emphasis on identifying the cause. While a clot forming on a ruptured plaque is the most common cause, a tear in a coronary artery, a spasm or a clot that travelled there can also trigger a heart attack. Some of these causes are more common in women. Knowing the cause helps doctors choose the right tests and treatment,” he said.

“The new definition also uses separate upper limits for cardiac troponin (a blood test used to detect heart attacks) in women and men. Women generally have lower levels, so a single cut-off can miss heart muscle injury in a woman. This should help doctors recognise heart injury and heart attacks in women more reliably.”

Dr Kiat said the common misconception of heart attacks as something men experience means women’s heart attacks often go undiagnosed.

“A woman may delay seeking help when symptoms begin, and a clinician may be slower to recognise them as signs of a heart attack,” he said. 

“There are also atypical causes that are more common in women. Women are more likely than men to have a heart attack caused by a spontaneous tear in a coronary artery, known as spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD), or by coronary artery spasm. 

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“Problems with the heart’s tiny blood vessels are also more common among women and can cause typical cardiac chest pain, and the diagnosis may be missed when only a standard coronary angiogram is done and showed no major blockages.”

So what heart attack symptoms should we look out for in women?

“Central chest pressure or tightness is the most common heart attack symptom in both women and men,” Dr Kiat said. 

“Women are more likely than men to also have other symptoms, such as breathlessness, nausea or vomiting, unusual fatigue, or pain in the jaw, neck, arms or upper back, and are somewhat more likely to have no chest pain at all. Men are more likely to sweat. Overall the differences are modest, so everyone, male or female, should take any of these symptoms seriously.”

If you’re not sure whether your symptoms are actually a heart attack, Dr Kiat shared a simple rule to keep in mind.

“If you have new or unexplained chest discomfort that lasts more than 10 minutes or keeps coming back, call Triple Zero (000). Call immediately if you also feel breathless, sweaty or nauseated. Don’t drive yourself or try to work out whether it’s due to stress or anxiety. Let the ambulance and emergency team assess you. If it is a heart attack, every minute matters,” he said.

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Prevention is also important, so not smoking, limiting alcohol, eating well, being active and trying to get enough sleep will help keep your heart healthy.

But regular check-ups and tests at key ages will help to pick up any signs that something isn’t quite right. Katauskas is a prime example; had she got her cholesterol checked earlier she could’ve prevented her heart attack.

“I was very fit and healthy, not a smoker, a runner, didn’t eat particularly unhealthy foods, so I’ve rarely gone to the doctor, which was actually a problem because I just should have gone for a check-up when I was 50, and then they would have found out that I had this genetic cholesterol issue that I just didn’t know,” she said.

Dr Kiat said menopause is a good time to get your heart health reviewed, and recommended asking your GP for a heart health check at age 45; those with diabetes should get this done at 35 and First Nations women are advised to do this at age 30.

“Speak to your GP earlier if you have a family history of early heart disease, went through menopause at 45 or younger, or had pregnancy complications such as pre-eclampsia or gestational diabetes. Your pregnancy history is part of your heart health history, so make sure your GP knows about it,” he said.

“My message this World Heart Day is simple: women’s hearts aren’t smaller versions of men’s hearts. Women’s risk factors and symptoms must be taken seriously, and women deserve the same standard of preventative care, diagnosis and treatment as men.”

The information provided in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.