Has Medical Literature Ignored Women For Long?

Studies have shown women being under represented in clinical trials

04 Mar, 2023

Kashish Sharma

We are not that same

Men and women are not entirely similar. Science has shown we differ biologically as well as emotionally.

Source: Thehealthsite

Response to diseases and medicines might not be same

If every cell in the body has a sex, it means how men and women respond to diseases and medications might also differ.

Source: Thehealthsite

Diagnoses favour male biology

Studies have shown that most medical literature is based on experiences of man. It means that criteria for many diagnoses are based purely on male biology.

Source: Thehealthsite

Assumptions at play

What works for men might also work for women has been a common erroneous assumption in history of healthcare.

Source: Thehealthsite

Reproductive cycle kept them away

Women were earlier excluded from clinical studies on account of their fluctuating sex hormones that might have complicated the results.

Source: Thehealthsite

Old notions dying

New research is showing that the old notion of women being less prone to cardiovascular diseases might only stand true till menopause and not after estrogen starts dipping.

Source: Thehealthsite

Delay in diagnosis

Studies show on an average, women are diagnosed with heart disease seven to eight years later than men.

Source: Thehealthsite

Might not fit the ‘classic’ signs

Studies are showing that while suffering a heart attack, often women have their symptoms lying outside the scope of what are known as the ‘classic’ signs.

Source: Thehealthsite

Pain often dismissed

Conditions like endometriosis have been often been misdiagnosed and poorly understood for a long time. Their symptoms of pain have often been dismissed as ‘normal’.

Source: Thehealthsite

Trying to make space

With 70 per cent world health professionals being women, their influence over medical research is still developing.

Source: Thehealthsite

Thanks For Reading!

Next: Are Clinicians Prone To Take Women Patients' Pain Less Seriously?

Find Out More