Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is the leading cause of heart attack in women under age 40 and until recently was largely unstudied due to the erroneous belief that it was a rare occurrence. Novel patient-initiated research initiated in 2010 by the multidisciplinary Mayo Clinic SCAD Research Program SCAD is changing that. Mayo Clinic is the leading clinical and research program for SCAD, a cause of heart attack and sudden death not associated with the typical risk factors for heart disease and primarily affects previously healthy younger women and men.
