New Video and Paper: Tying together GSL’s research program on gender and sex disparities in adverse drug events

The danger of women’s greater vulnerability to adverse drug events (ADEs) looms large in public consciousness, popular media, and scientific research. Yet, as a series of GenderSci Lab studies over the past four years have shown, biological explanations for this sex disparity rest on flawed empirical evidence, fraught regulatory processes, and media hype. We are excited to tie a bow on this research program with a new video explainer and a commentary in Women's Health Issues published last month that summarize our findings.

We previously published two papers (and an explainer blog) demonstrating that sex disparities in ADEs are likely driven by a myriad of social factors rather than solely biological ones. First, in an article in JAMA Network Open, we showed that adjusting for baseline rates of prescription drug use dramatically reduces the observed disparities in ADE rates. In a second paper in Social Science and Medicine, we dove into the gender-related pathways that include not only differences in rates of drug usage, but also healthcare utilization, clinician bias, perception of an event as “adverse,” and gendered patterns of social determinants of health — what we collectively describe as a “Gender Hypothesis” explaining observed sex disparities in ADEs.

Additionally, in a third publication in Social Studies of Science, we examined how sex differences in Ambien clearance — and consequent sex-specific dosage — became established as a touchstone example of the importance of sex difference research. By illuminating the role of regulatory agencies, advocacy organizations, and the media in crystallizing Ambien as sex difference “fact” despite an unsettled evidence base, we further motivate the need for studies to explicitly investigate causal mechanisms underlying sex differences in ADEs, including (or especially) gender-linked mechanisms. 

To tie this large research program together and facilitate translation to a public audience, the GenderSci Lab, supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, developed a short video that is appropriate for sharing on social media as well as incorporating into educational settings. Our commentary in Women’s Health Issues also serves as a helpful summary for biomedical researchers and academics. With these additional tools, we hope to expand the discussion of sex disparities in ADEs and bring greater attention to the gendered social context of these claims. 

Read the new commentary here: Gompers, A., T. Rushovich, S. S. Richardson, and K. M. N. Lee. 2026. "Exploring the Contributions of Gendered Social Factors to Sex Disparities in Adverse Drug Events." Women's Health Issues. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.whi.2025.12.003.

STATEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL LABOR

This blog post was drafted by Annika Gompers, with input and edits by Katharine Lee and Sarah Richardson.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Tamara Rushovich, Kelsey Ichikawa, Katharine Lee, Annika Gompers, and Sarah Richardson contributed to the creation of the video. This project was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

RECOMMENDED CITATION

Gompers, A., Lee, K., and Richardson S.S. “New Video and Paper: Tying together GSL’s research program on gender and sex disparities in adverse drug events. 3 March 2026. https://www.genderscilab.org/blog/new-video-and-paper-gsls-research-program-gender-sex-disparities-ades