Sex differences in medicine

Sex differences in medicine include sex-specific diseases or conditions which occur only in people of one sex due to underlying biological factors (for example, prostate cancer in males or uterine cancer in females); sex-related diseases, which are diseases that are more common to one sex (for example, breast cancer and systemic lupus erythematosus which occur predominantly in females);^[1] and diseases which occur at similar rates in males and females but manifest differently according to sex (for example, peripheral artery disease).^[2]

Sex differences should not be confused with gender differences. The US National Academy of Medicine recognizes sex differences as biological at the chromosomal and anatomical levels, whereas gender differences are based on self-representation and other factors including biology, environment and experience.^[3][4] That said, both biological and behavioural differences influence human health, and may do so differentially. Such factors can be inter-related and difficult to separate. Evidence-based approaches to sex and gender medicine try to examine the effects of both sex and gender as factors when dealing with medical conditions that may affect populations differently.^[5][6][3]

As of 2021^[update], over 10,000 articles had been published addressing sex and gender differences in clinical medicine and related literature.^{[citation needed]} Sex and gender affect cardiovascular,^[7] pulmonary^[8] and autoimmune systems,^[9][10] gastroenterology,^[11][12][13] hepatology,^[5] nephrology,^[14] endocrinology,^[15][16] haematology,^[17] neurology,^{[18][19][20][21]} pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics.^{[22][23][6][3]}

Sexually transmitted infections, which have a significant probability of transmission through sexual contact, can be contracted by either sex. Their occurrence may reflect economic and social as well as biological factors, leading to sex differences in the transmission, prevalence, and disease burden of STIs.^[24]

Historically, medical research has primarily been conducted using the male body as the basis for clinical studies. The findings of these studies have often been applied across the sexes, and healthcare providers have traditionally assumed a uniform approach in treating both male and female patients. More recently, medical research has started to understand the importance of taking sex into account as evidence increases that the symptoms and responses to medical treatment may be very different between sexes.^[25]