[Age and gender difference in rheumatology]

Temperamental traits of women applying for a type of job that has been characterized historically by male identity: the military career as case study

BACKGROUND

Over the past fifty years in the Western world the professions and activities that were once practised only by males, are now available to females, too. Affective temperaments, in line with their adaptive function, influence career choices. In general, males and females have proved to have different temperamental profiles. In this study we inquire into the question whether gender differences in temperament have continued unchanged in a field, such as the military career, that has been historically characterized by a male identity.

METHODS

1426 males and 122 females wishing to become a cadet in the Italian Air Force were tested using TEMPS-A[P] (the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego self-questionnaire, Pisan version).

RESULTS

Univariate and multivariate analyses failed to distinguish males from females. Both males and females tend to have a high score on the hyperthymic scale (generally, a typical male temperament) and a very low one on the cyclothymic scale (generally, a typical female temperament), with low scores on the depressive and the irritable scales.

CONCLUSIONS

This study supports the idea that different gender-related temperaments are functional to differences in the roles played by males and females during the biological and social evolutionary process.

Epidemiology and risk factors for pathologic scarring after burn wounds

OBJECTIVE

To describe the clinical characteristics of postburn scars and determine the independent risk factors specific to these patients. While burns may generate widespread and disfiguring scars and have a dramatic influence on patient quality of life, the prevalence of postburn pathologic scarring is not well documented, and the impact of certain risk factors is poorly understood.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis was conducted of the clinical records of 703 patients (2440 anatomic burn sites) treated at the Turin Burn Outpatient Clinic between January 1994 and May 15, 2006. Prevalence and evolution time of postburn pathologic scarring were analyzed with univariate and multivariate risk factor analysis by sex, age, burn surface and full-thickness area, cause of the burn, wound healing time, type of burn treatment, number of surgical procedures, type of surgery, type of skin graft, and excision and graft timing.

RESULTS

Pathologic scarring was diagnosed in 540 patients (77%): 310 had hypertrophic scars (44%); 34, contractures (5%); and 196, hypertrophic-contracted scars (28%). The hypertrophic induction was assessed at a median of 23 days after reepithelialization and lasted 15 months (median). A nomogram, based on the multivariate regression model, showed that female sex, young age, burn sites on the neck and/or upper limbs, multiple surgical procedures, and meshed skin grafts were independent risk factors for postburn pathologic scarring (Dxy 0.30).

CONCLUSION

The identification of the principal risk factors for postburn pathologic scarring not only would be a valuable aid in early risk stratification but also might help in assessing outcomes adjusted for patient risk.