van den Houdt Sophie C M, Mommersteeg Paula M C, Widdershoven Jos, Kupper Nina
Center of Research On Psychological Disorders and Somatic Diseases (CoRPS), Department of Medical & Clinical Psychology, Tilburg University, PO Box 90153, 5000LE, Tilburg, the Netherlands.
Department of Cardiology, Elisabeth-TweeSteden Hospital, Doctor Deelenlaan 5, 5042 AD, Tilburg, the Netherlands.
Int J Behav Med. 2024 Nov 6. doi: 10.1007/s12529-024-10333-y.
Cognitive complaints (e.g., health anxiety and illness disruption) are commonly experienced by patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). While it is known that sex and gender affect health, their influence on cognitive complaints remains unknown. The current study explored sex and gender differences in cognitive complaints during the first month (acute phase) and beyond, up to 2 years (recovery phase) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
A total of 514 (M = 64.2 ± 8.9, 84.2% male) completed the cognitive scale of the Health Complaints Scale (i.e., overall cognitive complaints, health worry, illness disruption) at baseline, 1, 12, and 24 months post-PCI. Additional questionnaires to gauge gender identity, traits, and norms were administered in a follow-up study. General linear mixed model analyses were conducted to examine the influence of sex, gender, sex × gender, and covariates on cognitive complaints.
Cognitive complaints only decreased in the first month post-PCI (all p < .01). There were no clear sex differences. However, gender generally predicted cognitive complaints in the first 2 years post-PCI: masculinity was related to less complaints, whereas feminine individuals reported higher absolute levels of complaints.
The current findings reveal that gender is a valuable factor concerning health complaints and indicate the need to further elaborate on the discrepancies between sex and gender in health research.
冠心病（CHD）患者常出现认知方面的问题（如健康焦虑和疾病干扰）。虽然已知性别会影响健康，但其对认知问题的影响尚不清楚。本研究探讨了经皮冠状动脉介入治疗（PCI）后第一个月（急性期）及之后长达2年（恢复期）认知问题中的性别差异。
共有514名患者（男性占84.2%，M = 64.2±8.9）在PCI术后基线、1个月、12个月和24个月时完成了健康问题量表的认知量表（即总体认知问题、健康担忧、疾病干扰）。在后续研究中还发放了其他问卷以评估性别认同、特质和规范。采用一般线性混合模型分析来检验性别、性别认同、性别×性别认同以及协变量对认知问题的影响。
认知问题仅在PCI术后第一个月有所下降（所有p <.01）。没有明显的性别差异。然而，性别认同在PCI术后的前2年通常可预测认知问题：男性特质与较少的问题相关，而具有女性特质的个体报告的问题绝对水平较高。
当前研究结果表明，性别认同是与健康问题相关的一个重要因素，并表明有必要在健康研究中进一步阐述性别和性别认同之间的差异。
