Gender Medicine and Pharmacotherapy

The incidence, clinical manifestations, response to therapy and side effects of some pathologies, as well as lifestyles and response to nutrients can be very different depending on sex. The course aims to provide an explanation of how biological differences in the two sexes, including hormones, can differently influence the risk for developing different diseases, the onset of symptoms, their progression, and the different response to pharmacotherapy. The molecular, pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic mechanisms will also be illustrated to understand the peculiar pathophysiological differences of gender and which determine the different response to drugs, as well as the adverse reactions, which are more frequent and more severe in women.

At the end of the course, the student will have to demonstrate knowledge of the definitions of gender medicine and gender pharmacology and the basis of these differences, as biological, social and environmental factors that can influence, differently between men and women, the risk for developing certain diseases, the onset of symptoms and their progression and the different response to treatments. The student will also have to demonstrate the understanding of the importance of analyzing clinical data by gender and know how to apply this knowledge within the pathophysiological contexts addressed in the course.