TY - JOUR
T1 - Revisiting sex as a biological variable in hypertension research
AU - Ryan, Michael J.
AU - Clemmer, John S.
AU - Mathew, Roy O.
AU - Faulkner, Jessica L.
AU - Taylor, Erin B.
AU - Abais-Battad, Justine M.
AU - Hollis, Fiona
AU - Sullivan, Jennifer C.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024, Ryan et al. This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
PY - 2024/9/3
Y1 - 2024/9/3
N2 - Half of adults in the United States have hypertension as defined by clinical practice guidelines. Interestingly, women are generally more likely to be aware of their hypertension and have their blood pressure controlled with treatment compared with men, yet hypertension-related mortality is greater in women. This may reflect the fact that the female sex remains underrepresented in clinical and basic science studies investigating the effectiveness of therapies and the mechanisms controlling blood pressure. This Review provides an overview of the impact of the way hypertension research has explored sex as a biological variable (SABV). Emphasis is placed on epidemiological studies, hypertension clinical trials, the genetics of hypertension, sex differences in immunology and gut microbiota in hypertension, and the effect of sex on the central control of blood pressure. The goal is to offer historical perspective on SABV in hypertension, highlight recent studies that include SABV, and identify key gaps in SABV inclusion and questions that remain in the field. Through continued awareness campaigns and engagement/education at the level of funding agencies, individual investigators, and in the editorial peer review system, investigation of SABV in the field of hypertension research will ultimately lead to improved clinical outcomes.
AB - Half of adults in the United States have hypertension as defined by clinical practice guidelines. Interestingly, women are generally more likely to be aware of their hypertension and have their blood pressure controlled with treatment compared with men, yet hypertension-related mortality is greater in women. This may reflect the fact that the female sex remains underrepresented in clinical and basic science studies investigating the effectiveness of therapies and the mechanisms controlling blood pressure. This Review provides an overview of the impact of the way hypertension research has explored sex as a biological variable (SABV). Emphasis is placed on epidemiological studies, hypertension clinical trials, the genetics of hypertension, sex differences in immunology and gut microbiota in hypertension, and the effect of sex on the central control of blood pressure. The goal is to offer historical perspective on SABV in hypertension, highlight recent studies that include SABV, and identify key gaps in SABV inclusion and questions that remain in the field. Through continued awareness campaigns and engagement/education at the level of funding agencies, individual investigators, and in the editorial peer review system, investigation of SABV in the field of hypertension research will ultimately lead to improved clinical outcomes.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85203116169&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85203116169&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1172/JCI180078
DO - 10.1172/JCI180078
M3 - Review article
C2 - 39225093
AN - SCOPUS:85203116169
SN - 0021-9738
VL - 134
JO - Journal of Clinical Investigation
JF - Journal of Clinical Investigation
IS - 17
M1 - e180078
ER -