Sex Differences In Awareness Research Articles

SEX DIFFERENCES IN HYPERTENSION PREVALENCE, TREATMENT AND CONTROL IN OLDER PEOPLE IN GERMANY: RESULTS OF THE NATINAL EXAMINATION SURVEY GESUNDHEIT 65+

Objective: As hypertension is closely linked to cardiovascular events, blood pressure (BP) levels and management in populations are a vital public health concern. A gender gap with higher awareness, treatment and control of hypertension in women, especially in younger women, has been repeatedly reported. We analyze recent national BP data of the Gesundheit 65+ study in older and very old men and women in Germany 2022-2023. Design and method: Nationally representative examination survey of the population aged 65 years and older residing in Germany. We analysed self-reported hypertension diagnoses, the mean of the second and third standardized oscillometric BP measurements (Mobil-O-Graph) with one of five cuffs according to upper arm circumference and Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical- (ATC) coded medication in the past 7 days. Hypertension was defined as mean systolic BP (SBP) at or above 140 mm Hg, or mean diastolic BP (DBP) at or above 90 mm Hg, or use of antihypertensives (ATC-codes C02 antihypertensives, C03 diuretics, C07 beta-blockers, C08 calcium-channel blockers or C09 ACEI and ARB) in participants with self-reported hypertension diagnosis. Awareness was defined as self-reported BP diagnosis in those with hypertension according to study definition. Provisional population weights were used. Results: BP was measured and hypertension status defined in 743 men and 686 women aged 65 to 100 years. The prevalence of hypertension according to our study definition was 58.3% [95% CI 53.2-63.3] in men and 59.5% [53.8-64.9] in women. There were no sex differences in awareness among hypertensives (men 81.7%, women 81.2%), nor in treatment among aware hypertensives (97.5% in men and women). However, control among treated hypertensives differed considerably: while 75.7% [69.2; -81.2] of men with treated hypertension had BP at or below 140/90, control among treated in women was only at 61.4% [54.2-; 68.1]. Conclusions: Our 2022-2023 national blood pressure data of people aged 65 years and older in Germany suggest a new gender gap with less hypertension control in older women compared to older men which was not yet apparent a decade ago and stands in contrast to findings in younger adults across many studies.

Sex difference in awareness of threat: A meta-analysis of sex differences in attentional orienting in the dot probe task

It has been argued that females are more important to infant survival than males and that his may lead to their increased fear. One way of increasing female survival chances would be to increase their sensitivity to threat. The dot-probe task has been used to investigate attentional bias. In this meta-analysis we combine the results of dot-probe experiments and explicitly examine sex differences in attentional orienting bias. Overall there is little evidence to support the existence of sex differences and these results are considered in terms of evolutionary impact.

Sex differences in the awareness of emergency contraceptive pills associated with unmarried Korean university students' intention to use contraceptive methods: an online survey.

BackgroundAwareness of emergency contraceptive pills (ECP) associated with an intention to use other contraceptive methods has rarely been investigated. This study compared the ECP awareness of males and females and its associations with intention to use four other contraceptive methods (condoms, oral contraceptive pills, and withdrawal and rhythm methods) in unmarried university students in Korea. This study explores the importance of ECP awareness in university students’ contraceptive education.MethodsA descriptive cross-sectional study design was employed, in which 1372 unmarried university students (men, n = 755, women, n = 617) answered a Web-based survey. Sex differences in ECP awareness and four contraceptive intentions, and associations between ECP awareness and contraceptive intentions between sex were analysed using independent t-tests and χ2 test. Variables yielding significant associations with contraceptive intentions (p < 0.05) were included in a logistic regression using the adjusted odds ratio (AOR) to estimate the impact of ECP awareness on students’ contraceptive intentions.ResultsAwareness of ECP was found in 88.2 % of participants, which was generally positive. There were significant sex differences in some ECP awareness and students’ contraceptive intentions, and in the associations between previous ECP use and ECP awareness between male and female university students. In men, the belief that “ECP can cause sex with multiple partners” was associated with intention to use the rhythm method (AOR = 1.61, 95 % confidence interval [CI] = 1.02–2.56). For women, the belief that “ECP is necessary in case of condom breakage” was associated with intention to use the withdrawal (AOR = 058, 95 % CI = 0.37–0.93) or rhythm (AOR = 0.36, 95 % CI = 0.16–0.84) methods, and “ECP should be prescribed by a doctor” was associated with the intention to use the rhythm method (AOR = 0.45, 95 % CI = 0.26–0.77).ConclusionsECP awareness was associated with the intentions of students to use withdrawal or rhythm methods. The sex-specific approach in the examination of students’ contraceptive intentions and their determinants was helpful.

Knowledge of Reproductive System Cancers, Their Treatments and Side Effects

We explored, via an online questionnaire, knowledge of breast and reproductive system cancers in patients and non-patients who access the internet for information on these diseases. We compared that knowledge to the attention the diseases have received in medical research and on the Internet. Data were collected from 690 respondents (37 % male, 63 % female) about their knowledge of prevalence, lethality, treatments and side effects of testicular, prostate, breast, uterine, cervical and ovarian cancers. Most males, but only half of the female participants, were patients themselves. Although participants showed better knowledge of cancers specific to their own sex, both sexes felt familiar with breast cancer and less aware of other cancers. Women were as aware as men of side effects of treatments for male reproductive cancers. Sex differences in awareness appear to reflect different attitudes towards illness, bias toward females as caregivers, and the disproportionate media attention given to breast cancer.

Sex Differences in Self-awareness of Smiling During a Mock Job Interview

The present study examined sex differences in awareness of smiling behavior during a job interview, along with intended outcomes of false smiling. Male and female participants were assigned to the interviewee role of a mock job interview and were videotaped. Results indicate that women were more self-aware of false, but not genuine, smiling. In addition, women reported using false smiles to mask negative emotion and to appear enthusiastic more than did men. Naive judges rated women who smiled in an attempt to mask negative emotion more harshly than men who smiled for this reason. Implications of these findings for the understanding of sex differences in smiling are discussed.

Sex differences in awareness and control of hypertension in France

To assess the prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension for men and women living in three French regions. A cross-sectional population survey. Subjects in the World Health Organization Monitoring Trends and Determinants in Cardiovascular Disease population surveys of Bas-Rhin, the urban community of Lille and Haute-Garonne, France. We studied 1924 men and 1874 women aged 35-64 years. Hypertension was defined as a systolic blood pressure > or = 160 mmHg, a diastolic blood pressure > or = 95 mmHg, being administered antihypertensive drug treatment or any combination of the foregoing. Treated hypertensive subjects were considered controlled if their systolic blood pressure was < 160 mmHg and their diastolic blood pressure was < 95 mmHg. The prevalence of hypertension was 40.2, 43.8 and 27.7% among men in Lille, Bas-Rhin and Haute-Garonne, respectively. For women, the corresponding values were 31.5, 33.8 and 18.9%. Among hypertensive men, 51.8% were aware of their condition, 30.0% were being administered drug treatment and 9.2% were controlled; the respective values for hypertensive women were 69.8, 51.2 and 25.3% (P < 0.001). Awareness of hypertension was associated with antihypertensive treatment more commonly in Haute-Garonne (81.0% for men and 84.7% for women). The percentages of treated subjects in whom adequate control of the blood pressure had been achieved were only 30.7% for men and 49.4% for women. Women have a better awareness of hypertension than do men and their hypertension is controlled better but the low rate of control for both sexes calls for further improvements.

Women's smoking trends and awareness of health risk

National data on smoking cessation rates indicate that female smokers may have more difficulty than male smokers in quitting smoking. To test the hypothesis that awareness of risk of smoking and personal vulnerability may be not as strong in female as in male smokers, we conducted a series of telephone interviews dealing with smokers' awareness and knowledge of the recent Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health, and their perception of and attitudes toward personal risk. The results indicated no marked sex difference in awareness of the Surgeon General's Report, but showed that significantly more female than male smokers worried about what they heard and read about the risk of smoking. A larger percentage of female smokers attributed a greater health risk from smoking to men than to women, thus suggesting that women's feelings of personal vulnerability may be weaker than men's.