Advancing Precision Diabetes Care: Sex and Gender Differences in Diabetes Management

Diabetes management is increasingly moving toward more personalized and equitable models of care, yet important sex- and gender-related differences remain insufficiently addressed in routine clinical practice. In both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, women and men may differ in clinical presentation, cardiovascular risk profile, treatment patterns, self-management behaviors, therapeutic target attainment, and the development of diabetes-related complications. A better understanding of these differences is therefore essential to improve prevention, optimize treatment, and reduce inequalities in outcomes. Recent real-world evidence from primary care has highlighted that such differences may emerge early in the course of disease. In a Catalonian cohort of people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes, women were older at diagnosis, had higher BMI and less favorable lipid profiles, and were less likely than men to achieve LDL-cholesterol targets; women also had lower statin and antiplatelet prescribing in some prevention settings, with gaps persisting after one year of follow-up. These findings reinforce the need to examine sex differences not only in glycemic control, but also in broader cardiometabolic risk management and complication prevention.At the same time, gender shapes how diabetes is experienced and managed in daily life. Qualitative studies in primary care have shown that women and men may differ in their perceptions of diabetes, self-care priorities, family support, and barriers to adherence, suggesting that clinical management should account for both biological and social dimensions of care. In this sense, sex and gender are not peripheral variables, but key determinants of how diabetes is diagnosed, treated, monitored, and lived. As the burden of diabetes and its complications continues to grow worldwide, there is a timely opportunity to refine clinical care through a sex- and gender-informed lens. Research in this area may help identify patients at higher risk of suboptimal management, inform more tailored preventive strategies, improve therapeutic intensification, and support more responsive models of diabetes care in primary care and specialist settings. This is well aligned with the need to strengthen diabetes prevention and treatment while addressing the impact of changing demographics and inequalities in complications.This Research Topic aims to bring together high-quality clinical, epidemiological, behavioral, and implementation research exploring how sex and gender influence diabetes management and complication prevention. We particularly welcome studies with direct relevance to clinical practice, including work on cardiovascular risk-factor control, prescribing patterns, self-management, adherence, patient experience, and real-world care pathways across diabetes populations.To gather further insights into this important and clinically relevant field, we welcome original research, review, and perspective articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:• Sex and gender differences in glycemic control, treatment patterns, and therapeutic intensification• Cardiovascular risk-factor management and prevention of macrovascular and microvascular complications• Differences in lipid-lowering, antihypertensive, antiplatelet, and glucose-lowering treatment use• Self-management, adherence, diabetes distress, and patient-reported experience across sexes and genders• Real-world evidence on inequalities in diabetes care from primary care, registries, and longitudinal cohorts• Sex-specific and gender-sensitive approaches to complication prevention in type 1 and type 2 diabetes• Clinical and implementation strategies to improve equitable diabetes care and outcomes• The impact of sex, gender, and changing demographics on diabetes complications and routine management Topic editors: Alexandra Kautzky-Willer, Anna Ramírez-Morros Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/80512/advancing-precision-diabetes-care-sex-and-gender-differences-in-diabetes-management