Women aren’t properly represented in scientific studies With all the hype about personalized medicine one day, doctors will use patients’ genomes to tailor treatment. One would hope that the medical community already had a decent grip on differences between the sexes…Yet scientists and clinicians often ignore sex differences, if they are even aware of them. According to a study in-press in Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, out of nearly 2,000 animal studies published in 2009, there was a bias toward the use of male animals in eight of 10 disciplines.
Women have been underrepresented in scientific studies due to the preference to study diseases and test drugs in males, putting women at risk and limiting the scope of scientific knowledge. Women have two X chromosomes, and many different genes compared to men’s X and Y chromosomes. These differences lead to differences in the likelihood of certain illnesses, the responses to medication, and adverse drug reactions. Despite these differences, scientists and clinicians often ignore sex differences.
Historically, men were often prioritized over women in clinical studies due to several reasons. One major reason was the belief that women’s hormonal fluctuations would interfere with study results and make it more difficult to draw clear conclusions. Additionally, women were often excluded from clinical trials due to concerns about reproductive health, including the potential for harm to developing fetuses.
However, these practices began to change with the passage of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Revitalization Act of 1993, which required that women and minorities be included in all NIH-funded clinical research.
A study published in 2011 in the Journal of Women’s Health looked at the inclusion of women in cardiovascular clinical trials between 2000 and 2007. The study found that while women made up 51% of the general population, they represented only 34% of participants in cardiovascular clinical trials during that time period.
2012 study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine examined the inclusion of women and minorities in cancer clinical trials. The study found that while there had been improvements in the inclusion of women in clinical trials, disparities still existed in the representation of minorities.
Overall, men were often prioritized in clinical studies due to historical biases and concerns about the potential impact of women’s hormonal fluctuations and reproductive health. However, changes in policies and increased awareness of the importance of including women and minorities in clinical research have led to improvements in representation in recent years.
• Women’s underrepresentation in scientific studies is a practice that puts women at risk and limits the scope of our scientific knowledge.
• Sex differences exist in the likelihood of certain illnesses, the responses to medication, and adverse drug reactions, yet scientists and clinicians often ignore these differences.
• Clinical trials and animal studies have a male bias due to the belief that males are a more homogenous study population and that results are easier to analyze and interpret.
Recognizing sex differences is essential for personalized medicine, and ignoring these differences puts women at risk and limits scientific knowledge.
Women aren’t properly represented in scientific studies, Slate Magazine, Melinda Wenner Moyer
https://slate.com/technology/2010/07/women-aren-t-properly-represented-in-scientific-studies.html
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https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12533102/
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https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20160159/
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