Alzheimer’s disease, gender and health: reflections on the place of difference in neuroscientific research

Abstract

The aim of this essay is to reflect about the place of difference in scientific research on Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which becomes a growing public health problem as the Brazilian population ages. In this scenario, our intention is to explore gender issues in relation to other social markers, to understand the heterogeneity of experiences and perceptions regarding the disease. To this do so, we carried out extensive bibliographic review and conducted brief online research on the PubMed platform. Although many studies indicate that Alzheimer’s has a higher incidence in women, issues such as race/ethnicity, social class, and other conditions have not been appropriated by researchers. Regarding prevention of the disease, differences are little or not considered.