Academic emergency medicine : official journal of the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine
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Cerebrovascular neurologic emergencies including ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), and migraine are leading causes of death and disability that are frequently diagnosed and treated in the emergency department (ED). Although sex and gender differences in neurologic emergencies are beginning to become clearer, there are many unanswered questions about how emergency physicians should incorporate sex and gender into their research initiatives, patient evaluations, and overall management plans for these conditions. ⋯ Recommendations for future research on the role of sex and gender in the diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes pertinent to ED providers are described for each of three diagnoses: stroke, SAH, and migraine. Recommended future research also includes investigation of the biologic and pathophysiologic differences between men and women with neurologic emergencies as they pertain to ED diagnoses and treatments.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that among older adults (≥65 years), falls are the leading cause of injury-related death. Fall-related fractures among older women are more than twice as frequent as those for men. ⋯ As part of the 2014 Academic Emergency Medicine (AEM) consensus conference on "Gender-Specific Research in Emergency Care: Investigate, Understand, and Translate How Gender Affects Patient Outcomes," a breakout group convened to generate a research agenda on priority questions to be answered on this topic. The consensus-based priority research agenda is presented in this article.
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The effect of sex on survival in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is controversial. Some studies report more favorable outcomes in women, while others suggest the opposite, citing disparities in care. Whether sex predicts differential age-specific survival is still uncertain. ⋯ Overall OHCA survival for women was lower than for men in the OPALS study. Factors related to the sex differences in survival (rates of bystander CPR and shockable rhythms) may be modifiable. The probability of survival differed across age for men and women in a nonlinear fashion. This differential influence of age on survival for men and women should be considered in future studies evaluating survival by sex in OHCA population.
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This article outlines the history, need, and evolution of gender medicine in emergency care research. Clinical examples are used where sex and gender play a role in diagnosis, management, or prognosis of patients in the emergency department (ED). The ED serves as an ideal setting to advance sex- and gender-specific research as the primary access point for health care for much of the U. ⋯ The ED also provides the primary access point for less life-threatening conditions such as substance abuse, mental health, and pain management (both acute and chronic). Because one-fifth of the U. S. population is without health insurance, and many more lack a regular provider or rapid access to their providers, the ED is often the only point of contact for advancing gender medicine in this population.
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Emergency physicians are confronted daily with the care of traumatically injured patients. A considerable proportion of blunt trauma cases are due to motor vehicle crashes. While men have historically been overrepresented in crash-related injuries and deaths, unfavorable trends for women in alcohol-impaired driving crashes have emerged. This extended commentary with in-depth review presents an examination of the evolving role of sex and gender in alcohol-impaired driving and its outcomes.