This is the first article of a four-part series on women's health issues and nuclear medicine. This article will review women and heart disease. After reading this article the technologist will be able to: (a) compare and contrast the differences in diagnosing coronary artery disease between men and women; (b) explain the importance of radionuclide myocardial perfusion imaging in diagnosing and stratifying risk of coronary artery disease in women; and (c) list and explain the technical challenges of imaging women's hearts.