Gender differences in treatment

Men and women with rheumatic diseases are treated differently to some extent. Women tend to be diagnosed later in the course of the disease and exhibit many more types of symptoms. Men tend to have a somewhat more serious development of the disease.

Elsa has reviewed Medscape's reporting from the annual congress of the German Society for Rheumatology.

The differences in how men and women are treated concern both the medical treatment and the communication between doctor and patient. The research was carried out in Germany and was presented by Uta Kiltz, MD senior physician in rheumatology at the Ruhrgebiet Rheumatism Center in Bochum, and Susanna Späthling-Mestekemper, MD and PhD, at the Munich-Pasing Rheumatology Practice.

Women have to wait longer for a diagnosis

When it comes to diagnosing, axial spondylitis (axSpA) was used as an example. The disease can present itself differently in men and women, and since the criteria developed to diagnose often fit men better, it is more difficult to diagnose women.

Women are therefore generally diagnosed much later than men with the same disease and also run a higher risk of receiving an incorrect diagnosis.

Medicines and research

Späthling-Mestekemper also showed that women respond less well to treatment with the type of biological drugs known as TNF inhibitors. Women discontinue treatment with these preparations to a greater extent to switch to other medicines. 

What this is due to is uncertain, but one of several explanations could be that the treatment is started (too) late and that the patient therefore does not get the desired effect.

Even science itself has shown shortcomings regarding taking gender into account. Women are underrepresented in clinical studies, and in many cases, gender differences have also not been taken into account in animal experiments.

Differences in communication

Female doctors tend to focus more on prevention and communication with the patient than their male colleagues. Female doctors' patient appointments also last somewhat longer.

Male doctors, in turn, tend to focus more on the patient's medical history, physical examinations and the diagnosis itself.

We owe it to both male and female patients to see that the problem exists and to educate in how we deal with and treat people with rheumatic disease, concludes Späthling-Mestekemper.

Footnote: The post is based on Medscape's article Are Women and Men With Rheumatism Treated Equally?