Introduction
Gender diversity in scientific authorship is a progress indicator in various medical fields, including gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy. The representation of women in academia reflects broader changes in professional roles and leadership. This study aims at analyzing trends in gender representation among authors of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in GI endoscopy from the 1960s to the present, providing insights into the progression of gender equity in academic gastroenterology.
Aims & Methods
A PubMed search using the terms "digestive endoscopy" and "gastrointestinal endoscopy" was conducted on April 1st, 2024, yielding 5,944 studies filtered for RCTs. After excluding non-English articles, those unrelated to endoscopy, and studies without identifiable first authors, 4,357 RCTs were included. First and last authors' genders were identified using Genderize.io with ≥90% certainty. Descriptive and inferential statistics, including chi-squared tests, were used to analyze trends in gender representation over time.
Results
In total, there were 967 female first authors (21.7%), 3,415 male first authors (77.0%), and 57 unclassified first authors (1.3%). Out of 4173 last authors, 637 were female (15.3%), 3,203 were male (76.7%), and 333 were unclassified (8.0%) (p < 0.001). Female representation among last authors increased from 0% to approximately 20%, while first authors rose from 0% in the 1970s to about 30% by 2024 (p<0.05 for both trends). Multivariate regression confirmed that the increase in female first authorship was more significant compared to last authorship (p<0.001, R-square 0.90).Regarding specific topics, “non-IBD-related diagnostic lower GI endoscopy” showed the highest representation for female first authors at 25.5%, while “Obesity” and “Artificial Intelligence” had the lowest at 1.4% and 1.7%, respectively. For the last authorship, “non-IBD-related diagnostic lower GI endoscopy” led at 22.1%, followed by “Diagnostic upper GI endoscopy” at 14.0%. The lowest percentages among the last authors were “Obesity” at 1.4% and “Artificial Intelligence” at 0.6%. Statistical analysis revealed significant differences in gender representation across topics (p < 0.0001).Regional differences were noted, with female first authors more prevalent in Europe (36.2%) and Asia (31.0%), while female last authors were more common in Europe (34.2%) and North America (30.8%, p = 0.032), highlighting variations in gender dynamics within endoscopy research.
Conclusion
This study demonstrates a progressive increase in female representation in digestive endoscopy RCTs, particularly among first authors. However, gender disparities persist in senior roles, underscoring the need for continued efforts to support gender equity, especially in leadership positions within academic gastroenterology.
References
Liu CS et al. Am J Gastroenterol. 2024 Oct 1;119(10):2103-2106.
Genderize Data Roskilde, Denmark. Genderize.io (last access Nov 1st, 2024
