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Cited by 199Sex and Gender in HealthcareDermatology and Skin DiseasesHair Growth and Disorders

Gender differences in skin: A review of the literature

Dao, Harry, Kazin, Rebecca A.·2007·Gender Medicine
DOI 10.1016/s1550-8579(07)80061-1
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Abstract

Background There has been increasing interest in studying gender differences in skin to learn more about disease pathogenesis and to discover more effective treatments. Recent advances have been made in our understanding of these differences in skin histology, physiology, and immunology, and they have implications for diseases such as acne, eczema, alopecia, skin cancer, wound healing, and rheumatologic diseases with skin manifestations.Objective This article reviews advances in our understanding of gender differences in skin.Methods Using the PubMed database, broad searches for topics, with search terms such as gender differences in skin and sex differences in skin, as well as targeted searches for gender differences in specific dermatologic diseases, such as gender differences in melanoma, were performed. Additional articles were identified from cited references. Articles reporting gender differences in the following areas were reviewed: acne, skin cancer, wound healing, immunology, hair/alopecia, histology and skin physiology, disease-specific gender differences, and psychological responses to disease burden.Results A recurring theme encountered in many of the articles reviewed referred to a delicate balance between normal and pathogenic conditions. This theme is highlighted by the complex interplay between estrogens and androgens in men and women, and how changes and adaptations with aging affect the disease process. Sex steroids modulate epidermal and dermal thickness as well as immune system function, and changes in these hormonal levels with aging and/or disease processes alter skin surface pH, quality of wound healing, and propensity to develop autoimmune disease, thereby significantly influencing potential for infection and other disease states. Gender differences in alopecia, acne, and skin cancers also distinguish hormonal interactions as a major target for which more research is needed to translate current findings to clinically significant diagnostic and therapeutic applications.Conclusions The published findings on gender differences in skin yielded many advances in our understanding of cancer, immunology, psychology, skin histology, and specific dermatologic diseases. These advances will enable us to learn more about disease pathogenesis, with the goal of offering better treatments. Although gender differences can help us to individually tailor clinical management of disease processes, it is important to remember that a patient's sex should not radically alter diagnostic or therapeutic efforts until clinically significant differences between males and females arise from these findings. Because many of the results reviewed did not originate from randomized controlled clinical trials, it is difficult to generalize the data to the general population. However, the pressing need for additional research in these areas becomes exceedingly clear, and there is already a strong foundation on which to base future investigations.

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  • Skin thickness is a gender-dependent variable known to affect signal strength, and is observed to be higher in men than women across all age ranges.

    “Skin thickness is another gender-dependent variable known to affect signal strength (as mentioned previously), and is observed to be higher in men than women across all age ranges [97,103].”

    From Sources of inaccuracy in photoplethysmography for continuous cardiovascular monitoring (2021) · cites this paper as [97]

  • Physiological differences between men and women extend into cardiovascular health and are noticeable in the PPG waveform.

    “The physiological differences between men and women extend into cardiovascular health and are thus noticeable in the PPG waveform [97,98].”

    From Sources of inaccuracy in photoplethysmography for continuous cardiovascular monitoring (2021) · cites this paper as [97]

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Authors
Dao, H., & Kazin, R. A.
Affiliations
Johns Hopkins University (US)
Corresponding author
Kazin, Rebecca A.
Venue
Gender Medicine
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2007-12
Volume
4
Issue
4
Pages
308-328
ISSN
1550-8579 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/s1550-8579(07)80061-1
OpenAlex
W2169236877
Cited by
199
References
212
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 9 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 15 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 10 · 2012: 11
FWCI
0.69
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed
Licence
www.elsevier.com/tdm/userlicense/1.0/ (tdm)
Locations
  • Gender Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Sex and Gender in Healthcare
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Dermatology › Dermatology and Skin Diseases
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Urology › Hair Growth and Disorders
Keywords
skin histology, skin physiology, skin immunology, acne, atopic dermatitis, hair loss, skin cancer, melanoma, wound healing, sex steroids, estrogen, androgens, aging, autoimmune disease, skin pH
MeSH terms
Acne Vulgaris, Alopecia, Animals, Autoimmune Diseases, Female, Hair, Humans, Male, Sex Characteristics, Gonadal Steroid Hormones, Skin, Skin Neoplasms, Wound Healing

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