Dataset Information

Differences in Family Health History Knowledge Among Bisexual and Lesbian Women.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

We aimed to determine whether there are differences between sexual minority women and heterosexual women in family health history knowledge.

Methods

We used data from Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation's The Health of Women Study^®. We included women who completed two of six online surveys between 2012 and 2015 (n?=?22,410).

Results

Compared with heterosexual women, bisexual and lesbian women had consistently greater odds of not knowing their family health history (e.g., odds ratios of 2.59 and 1.56 for breast cancer, respectively).

Conclusion

To avoid exacerbating existing health disparities, in the era of precision medicine, we must address gaps in knowledge of family health history.

SUBMITTER: Roberts MC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6477583 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Differences in Family Health History Knowledge Among Bisexual and Lesbian Women.

Roberts Megan C MC Krakow Melinda M Wheldon Christopher W CW Silver Michelle I MI

LGBT health 20190221 3

<h4>Purpose</h4>We aimed to determine whether there are differences between sexual minority women and heterosexual women in family health history knowledge.<h4>Methods</h4>We used data from Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation's The Health of Women Study<sup>®</sup>. We included women who completed two of six online surveys between 2012 and 2015 (n = 22,410).<h4>Results</h4>Compared with heterosexual women, bisexual and lesbian women had consistently greater odds of not knowing their family health ...[more]

PMID: 30789301

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Project description:BackgroundSexual minority individuals experience discrimination, leading to mental health disparities. Physical health disparities have not been examined to the same extent in systematic reviews so far.ObjectivesTo provide a systematic review and, where possible, meta-analyses on the prevalence of physical health conditions in sexual minority women (i.e. lesbian- and bisexual-identified women) compared to heterosexual-identified women.DesignThe study design is a systematic review with meta-analyses.Data sources and methodsA systematic literature search in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, CINAHL, and Web of Science databases was conducted on epidemiologic studies on physical health conditions, classified in the Global Burden of Disease project, published between 2000 and 2021. Meta-analyses pooling odds ratios were calculated.ResultsIn total, 23,649 abstracts were screened and 44 studies were included in the systematic review. Meta-analyses were run for arthritis, asthma, back pain, cancer, chronic kidney diseases, diabetes, headache disorders, heart attacks, hepatitis, hypertension, and stroke. Most significant differences in prevalence by sexual identity were found for chronic respiratory conditions, especially asthma. Overall, sexual minority women were significantly 1.5-2 times more likely to have asthma than heterosexual women. Furthermore, evidence of higher prevalence in sexual minority compared to heterosexual women was found for back pain, headaches/migraines, hepatitis B/C, periodontitis, urinary tract infections, and acne. In contrast, bisexual women had lower cancer rates. Overall, sexual minority women had lower odds of heart attacks, diabetes, and hypertension than heterosexual women (in terms of diabetes and hypertension possibly due to non-consideration of pregnancy-related conditions).ConclusionWe found evidence for physical health disparities by sexual identity. Since some of these findings rely on few comparisons only, this review emphasizes the need for routinely including sexual identity assessment in health research and clinical practice. Providing a more detailed picture of the prevalence of physical health conditions in sexual minority women may ultimately contribute to reducing health disparities.

Project description:Lesbian, bisexual and queer (LBQ) women experience pervasive sexual stigma that harms wellbeing. Stigma is a multi-dimensional construct and includes perceived stigma, awareness of negative attitudes towards one's group, and enacted stigma, overt experiences of discrimination. Despite its complexity, sexual stigma research has generally explored singular forms of sexual stigma among LBQ women. The study objective was to develop a scale to assess perceived and enacted sexual stigma among LBQ women. We adapted a sexual stigma scale for use with LBQ women. The validation process involved 3 phases. First, we held a focus group where we engaged a purposively selected group of key informants in cognitive interviewing techniques to modify the survey items to enhance relevance to LBQ women. Second, we implemented an internet-based, cross-sectional survey with LBQ women (n=466) in Toronto, Canada. Third, we administered an internet-based survey at baseline and 6-week follow-up with LBQ women in Toronto (n=24) and Calgary (n=20). We conducted an exploratory factor analysis using principal components analysis and descriptive statistics to explore health and demographic correlates of the sexual stigma scale. Analyses yielded one scale with two factors: perceived and enacted sexual stigma. The total scale and subscales demonstrated adequate internal reliability (total scale alpha coefficient: 0.78; perceived sub-scale: 0.70; enacted sub-scale: 0.72), test-retest reliability, and construct validity. Perceived and enacted sexual stigma were associated with higher rates of depressive symptoms and lower self-esteem, social support, and self-rated health scores. Results suggest this sexual stigma scale adapted for LBQ women has good psychometric properties and addresses enacted and perceived stigma dimensions. The overwhelming majority of participants reported experiences of perceived sexual stigma. This underscores the importance of moving beyond a singular focus on discrimination to explore perceptions of social judgment, negative attitudes and social norms.

Dataset Information

Differences in Family Health History Knowledge Among Bisexual and Lesbian Women.

Purpose

Methods

Results

Conclusion

Publications

Differences in Family Health History Knowledge Among Bisexual and Lesbian Women.

Similar Datasets

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