Medical Devices, Invisible Women, Harmful Consequences

Susan P Phillips; Katrina Gee; Laura Wells

doi:10.3390/ijerph192114524

Medical Devices, Invisible Women, Harmful Consequences

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Nov 5;19(21):14524. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192114524.

Authors

Susan P Phillips¹, Katrina Gee², Laura Wells³

Affiliations

¹ Departments of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 5E9, Canada.
² Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 5E9, Canada.
³ Department of Chemical Engineering, Queen's University, Kingston, ON K7L 5E9, Canada.

Abstract

In this commentary, we explore the disproportionate risk women experience with the insertion of various medical devices. Although pre-market device testing and complication tracking could be improved for all, a failure to consider sex differences in hormones, anatomy, inflammatory responses, and physical function puts women at particular risk. This invisibility of women is an example of gender bias in medical science and practice, a bias that could be corrected in the ways we suggest.

Keywords: gender; hip prosthesis; medical devices; sex differences; surgical mesh; women’s health.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Female
Humans
Male
Sex Characteristics*
Sexism*

Grants and funding

This work preceded but aligns with funding received from Queen’s University’s Wicked Ideas Grant (2021).