Gender Medicine in Kidney Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

Gender medicine is a branch of medical science that examines the differences in health and disease between men and women. This interdisciplinary field seeks to understand how biological sex and gender influence health outcomes, disease progression, and healthcare delivery. The foundation of gender medicine lies in the recognition that men and women can experience health issues differently due to a variety of factors, including biological, physiological, psychological, and social differences.

Cardiology was one of the first specialties to emphasize the importance of studying biological and hormonal profiles, which can affect susceptibility to diseases, the progression of illnesses, and responses to treatments. It is well established that cardiovascular diseases may present differently in women compared to men and that certain medications can have varying efficacy or side effects based on sex.

Historically, medical research has predominantly focused on male subjects, leading to a significant gap in understanding how various conditions affect women. Gender medicine aims to address these gaps and investigate critical issues, such as the underrepresentation of women in clinical trials, despite women comprising more than half of the global population. For instance, chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a more prevalent cause of years of life lost (YLL) in women than in men.

The rationale for gender medicine is rooted in the understanding that both gender and biological sex significantly impact health and healthcare. Moreover, it is essential to clarify the distinction between sex and gender. Although the terms are often used interchangeably in both lay and medical contexts, they have distinct meanings: sex refers to the biological attributes associated with physical and physiological characteristics, while gender encompasses the socially constructed roles, behaviors, expressions, relationships, and identities of individuals as men or women.

In contrast to some other specialties, nephrology has explored sex differences to a limited extent. However, interest among researchers is growing, and emerging evidence suggests that the progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is influenced by sex, as well as responses to medications and access to renal transplantation or dialysis.

The primary aim of this Special Issue is to compile the most comprehensive documentation on this often-neglected topic, specifically focusing on gender disparities in kidney diseases.

Prof. Dr. Francesco Locatelli
Dr. Lucia Del Vecchio
Prof. Dr. Francesca Mallamaci
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Kidney and Dialysis is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• gender medicine
• sex differences
• kidney disease
• chronic kidney disease
• health outcomes