Sex Differences in Sex Hormones, Carotid Atherosclerosis, and Stroke

T here are notable sex differences in cardiovascular disease.Although the cumulative incidence of cardiovascular disease in women lags behind that of men by ≈7 to 10 years, strokes comprise a larger proportion of cardiovascular events in women than in men. 1 In terms of clinical impact, aspirin used for primary prevention is associated with a significance reduction in stroke women but not myocardial infarction in men. 2 Differences in endogenous sex hormones have been hypothesized to underlie these substantial sex differences, but clinical data are limited on the relationship between endogenous levels and cardiovascular disease occurrence.