What is it about?
This article discusses the ways in which gender can contribute to health studies and explains the development of a new gender metric using available data from the UK Biobank. The study used the concept of stereotypical femininity to construct a femininity score. The constructed femininity score was found to be a significant predictor of angina diagnosis prior to a myocardial infarction event in men but not in women, indicating the importance of considering gender as a factor in cardiovascular care.
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Why is it important?
This study is important because it provides a new tool to conduct gender-sensitive analyses in observational studies, and applied it to the study of angina diagnosis prior to myocardial infarction events. It also suggests that femininity traits may contribute differently to the diagnosis of angina in men and women. This highlights the importance of studying gender differences in health outcomes to inform future research and policy.
Perspectives
It is commonly known that women are often not diagnosed with angina, a heart condition, which has been attributed in part to gender stereotypes. However, this study found that men who scored higher on the femininity score were more likely to be diagnosed with angina. This may be because femininity is linked to healthier habits and a greater inclination to seek medical attention. Although preliminary analysis indicates that femininity may result in less smoking and vitamin supplement use, more research is required to verify this assertion.
Marie-Pierre Dubé
Montreal Heart Institute
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Construction of a femininity score in the UK Biobank and its association with angina diagnosis prior to myocardial infarction, Scientific Reports, February 2022, Springer Science + Business Media,
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05713-x.
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