Sex Differences in Otolaryngology: Focus on the Emerging Role of Estrogens in Inflammatory and Pro-Resolving Responses

Luo, Sheng‐Dean; Chiu, Tai‐Jan; Chen, Wei-Chih; Wang, Ching Shuen

doi:10.3390/ijms22168768

Cited by 9 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 232 publications

(375 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Females had greater odds of developing nasal polyps when low estradiol levels were present compared with normal levels 29 . Variations of gonadal hormones between males and females may contribute to the sex‐based differences seen in epidemiologic studies through inflammatory responses 30 …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Biological sex as a modulator in rhinologic anatomy, physiology, and pathology: A scoping review

Ramkumar

Brar

Marks

et al. 2023

Int Forum Allergy Rhinol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundBiological sex is increasingly recognized as a critical variable in health care. The authors reviewed the current literature regarding sex‐based differences in rhinology to summarize the data and identify critical knowledge gaps.MethodsA scoping review was conducted. Publications reporting sex‐based differences in anatomy, physiology, and pathology focusing on disease prevalence, disease burden, and outcomes in rhinology were identified.ResultsSeventy‐five relevant manuscripts were identified. While paranasal sinuses are of similar size at birth, they become larger in males leading to differences in ostium location. Females outperform males in olfactory identification but only in the 18‐ to 50‐year age group. Estrogen and progesterone administration can impact muscarinic and α1‐adrenergic nasal mucosa receptor density. Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and CRS without nasal polyps are more prevalent in females while CRS with nasal polyps is more prevalent in males. CRS symptom burden is higher in females before and after endoscopic sinus surgery; however, no difference in endoscopic sinus surgery utilization was found based on sex. Allergic rhinitis is more common in males before puberty and in females after puberty. Epistaxis is more prevalent in males and postmenopausal females compared with premenopausal females, perhaps from differences in sex‐hormonal and hypertension status. In nasopharyngeal carcinoma, the incidence of sinus abnormalities was higher in males than females.ConclusionsAlthough many sex‐based differences exist in rhinology, further research is necessary to offer evidence‐based treatment guidelines. Gonadal hormones should be studied as a therapeutic in rhinologic pathology as baseline physiologic differences exist such as those found in nasal mucosa receptor density.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…29 Variations of gonadal hormones between males and females may contribute to the sex-based differences seen in epidemiologic studies through inflammatory responses. 30…”

Section: Epidemiologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Biological sex as a modulator in rhinologic anatomy, physiology, and pathology: A scoping review

Ramkumar

Brar

Marks

et al. 2023

Int Forum Allergy Rhinol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Therefore, the cells used in this study are only considered as different VFF cell lines, not as biologically female or male cells. Sex hormones play a role in ear, nose, and throat diseases [39]. While there are immunohistochemical studies showing the expression and distribution of estrogen and androgen receptors in human vocal folds [40][41][42], one study claims that these are unspecific staining patterns and thus false positives [43].…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Vocal fold fibroblasts and exposure to vibration in vitro: Does sex matter?

Kirsch,

Grossmann,

Steffan

et al. 2024

PLoS ONE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Studies have shown that certain vocal fold pathologies are more common in one sex than the other. This is often explained by differences in the composition of the lamina propria and anatomical differences between female and male vocal folds, resulting in e.g. different fundamental frequencies. Here, we investigated a potential sex-specific voice frequency effect in an in vitro setting using vocal fold fibroblasts from one male and one female donor with and without cigarette smoke extract (CSE) addition. After exposure to either male or female vibration frequency with or without CSE, cells and supernatants were harvested. Gene and protein analysis were performed by means of qPCR, western blot, ELISA and Luminex. We found that exposure of cells to both male and female vibration pattern did not elicit significant changes in the expression of extracellular matrix-, inflammation-, and fibrosis-related genes, compared to control cells. The addition of CSE to vibration downregulated the gene expression of COL1A1 in cells exposed to the female vibration pattern, as well as induced MMP1 and PTGS2 in cells exposed to both female and male vibration pattern. The protein expression of MMP1 and COX2 was found to be significantly upregulated only in cells exposed to CSE and female vibration pattern. To conclude, different vibration patterns alone did not cause different responses of the cells. However, the female vibration pattern in combination with CSE had a tendency to elicit/maintain more pro-inflammatory responses in cells than the male vibration pattern.

show abstract

“…Sex differences in hearing loss have been discussed in relation to the protective effect of estrogen [31]. Increasing evidence has suggested that the proinflammatory response in otolaryngological diseases is linked to the level of sex hormones [32]. The vessels of female rats constrict less and relax more in response to adrenergic stimulation than do the vessels of males [33].…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Hearing loss and physical function in the general population: A cross-sectional study

Daimaru

Wagatsuma

2022

PLoS ONE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective Hearing loss is a major public health concern. Higher physical function may be related to the maintenance of hearing acuity. Therefore, this study examined the association between hearing loss and physical function in the general population. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted with health checkup participants who underwent pure-tone audiometry at a regional health care center in Japan. Information for physical function included handgrip strength, vital capacity (VC), and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1). A hearing threshold of >30 dB at 1 kHz and/or >40 dB at 4 kHz in either ear was identified as hearing loss. The characteristics of the subjects were examined with stratification by sex and age group. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association between hearing loss and physical function with adjustments for age, body mass index and current smoking. Results Among the 4766 study subjects, 56.5% were male. The mean age was 47.7 years (SD: 13.8 years; range: 20–86 years), and the prevalence of hearing loss was 12.8% based on the definition stated above. For females, handgrip strength, VC, and FEV1 showed significant negative associations with hearing loss (multivariable-adjusted OR [95% CI] = 0.691 [0.560–0.852], 0.542 [0.307–0.959], and 0.370 [0.183–0.747], respectively). These associations were not found in males. Conclusions Higher physical function was associated with a lower prevalence of hearing loss among females. This study suggests that it is important to maintain physical function for hearing loss in females. Further studies are required to investigate sex differences in the relationship between physical function and hearing loss in the general population.

show abstract

Sex Differences in Otolaryngology: Focus on the Emerging Role of Estrogens in Inflammatory and Pro-Resolving Responses

Cited by 9 publications

References 232 publications

Biological sex as a modulator in rhinologic anatomy, physiology, and pathology: A scoping review

Biological sex as a modulator in rhinologic anatomy, physiology, and pathology: A scoping review

Vocal fold fibroblasts and exposure to vibration in vitro: Does sex matter?

Hearing loss and physical function in the general population: A cross-sectional study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About