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Do Women Physicians Accept and Follow Heart Failure Guidelines More Than Men?

Jesus Alvarez-GarciaMaría José Cristo RoperoÁngel Manuel Iniesta ManjavacasPablo Díez-VillanuevaAlberto Esteban-FernándezJavier de Juan BagudáMercedes Rivas-LasarteMikel Taibo UrquíaJuan Górriz-MagañaMarta Cobo MarcosJosebe Goirigolzarri-ArtazaDiego Iglesias Del ValleRamón Bover FreireCristina Beltrán HerreraAdolfo VillaRaquel Campuzano RuizManuel Martínez-Sellés
Published in: Current heart failure reports (2023)
A total of 387 physicians-173 women (44.7%)-from 128 different centers completed the survey. Compared to men, women were significantly younger (38.2 ± 9.1 years vs. 40.6 ± 11.2 years; p = 0.024) and had fewer years of clinical practice (12.1 ± 8.1 years vs. 14.5 ± 10.7 years; p = 0.014). Briefly, women and men had a positive opinion of the guidelines and thought that implementing quadruple therapy is feasible in less than 8 weeks. Women followed more frequently than men the new paradigm of "4 pillars at lowest doses" and considered more frequently the establishment of quadruple therapy before implanting a cardiac device. Although they agreed about "low blood pressure" as the major limitation for achieving quadruple therapy in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, there were discrepancies on the second most frequent barrier, and women were more proactive when initiating SGLT2 inhibitors. In a large survey including nearly 400 doctors from all over Spain to provide real-world opinion on 2021 ESC HF Guidelines and experience with SGLT2 inhibitors, women follow more frequently the new paradigm of "4 pillars at lowest doses", consider more frequently the establishment of quadruple therapy before implanting a cardiac device, and were more proactive when initiating SGLT2 inhibitors. Further studies confirming an association of sex with a better compliance of HF guidelines are needed.
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