Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Libin Cardiovascular Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Can J Public Health. 2020 Dec;111(6):980-983. doi: 10.17269/s41997-020-00417-z. Epub 2020 Sep 29.
An understanding of the influence of sex (biological attributes) and gender (socially constructed roles, behaviours, expressions, identities) factors on the risk of infection, hospitalization and death is of urgent importance in the COVID-19 pandemic response effort. Despite similar global rates of infection with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic), hospitalizations and mortality are higher in men than in women. Females may be less vulnerable to viral infection due to sex-based differences in immune responses and renin-angiotensin system activity. The response and side effects of currently studied potential therapies for COVID-19, such as hydroxychloroquine, likely differ by sex. Women form the majority of the health care workforce and a uniform approach to sizing of personal protective equipment may provide differing levels of protection from viral infection to health care workers of varying shapes and sizes. Important gender differences exist in the response to public health measures to prevent and contain spread of COVID-19, as well as presentation for testing and medical care, which may inadvertently propagate viral spread. Targeted approaches that consider both sex and gender, as well as measures of intersectionality, are urgently needed in the response efforts against COVID-19.
了解性别（生物属性）和性别（社会构建的角色、行为、表达、身份）因素对感染、住院和死亡风险的影响，对于应对 COVID-19 大流行至关重要。尽管全球严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2 （SARS-CoV-2，导致 COVID-19 大流行的病毒）的感染率相似，但男性的住院率和死亡率高于女性。由于免疫反应和肾素-血管紧张素系统活性方面的性别差异，女性可能不易受到病毒感染。目前研究的 COVID-19 潜在治疗方法（如羟氯喹）的反应和副作用可能因性别而异。女性构成了医疗保健劳动力的大多数，统一的个人防护设备尺寸方法可能为不同体型和大小的医护人员提供不同程度的病毒感染防护。在预防和控制 COVID-19 传播的公共卫生措施的反应以及进行检测和医疗护理方面，存在重要的性别差异，这可能无意中导致病毒传播。在应对 COVID-19 的努力中，迫切需要考虑性别和性别以及交叉性措施的针对性方法。
