Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review
Abstract Background More than one million people each year become infected by parasites that cause the disease cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). This disease manifests as one or more skin lesions or ulcers that are slow to heal with variable response rates to drug treatments. Thus far, little attention...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Global Health Research and Policy |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s41256-022-00266-y |
| _version_ | 1811200854827466752 |
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| author | Brianne Wenning Helen Price Hasara Nuwangi Kelemework Tafere Reda Ben Walters Reem Ehsanullah Greice Viana Alina Andras Lisa Dikomitis |
| author_facet | Brianne Wenning Helen Price Hasara Nuwangi Kelemework Tafere Reda Ben Walters Reem Ehsanullah Greice Viana Alina Andras Lisa Dikomitis |
| author_sort | Brianne Wenning |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background More than one million people each year become infected by parasites that cause the disease cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). This disease manifests as one or more skin lesions or ulcers that are slow to heal with variable response rates to drug treatments. Thus far, little attention has been paid to how the cultural effects of gender shape perceptions and experiences of CL. This review aims to bring together and analyse existing studies which use qualitative data to explore these differences. These studies offered insights into our specific research questions. Methods We conducted a systematic review of the literature pertaining to either CL or muco-cutaneous leishmaniasis (MCL) through EBSCO, EMBASE, Medline, Scopus and Web of Science databases. To meet inclusion criteria, articles had to be either qualitative or mixed-method with a qualitative component. They also had to include a reflection on how the gender of participants impacted the findings and addressed the lived experiences of CL. We did not exclude articles based on the language they were published in or in which country the study took place. Results From a total of 1589 potential articles, we found that thirteen met the inclusion criteria. These articles were published in English, Spanish or Portuguese and reported on studies carried out in various countries in Africa, Asia and South America. After using the principles of a meta-ethnography to analyse these studies, we generated several key themes. We found that health-seeking behaviours, treatment choices, stigma and the impact of scarring are shaped by gender in a variety of contexts. Conclusions Gender impacts on an individual’s experience of CL. In particular, women are more constricted in their health-seeking behaviours and experience more stigma both from the active lesions and from scarring than men. In many contexts, however, men are more at risk of becoming infected by the parasite that causes CL and may turn to more harmful or aggressive self-treatments. We recommend that future research on CL should consider the impact of gender as this can create very different experiences for individuals. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T02:10:47Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-030ae05da21e4291849ae330dfaf6d78 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2397-0642 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T02:10:47Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Global Health Research and Policy |
| spelling | doaj.art-030ae05da21e4291849ae330dfaf6d782022-12-22T03:52:24ZengBMCGlobal Health Research and Policy2397-06422022-09-017111310.1186/s41256-022-00266-yExploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature reviewBrianne Wenning0Helen Price1Hasara Nuwangi2Kelemework Tafere Reda3Ben Walters4Reem Ehsanullah5Greice Viana6Alina Andras7Lisa Dikomitis8Kent and Medway Medical School, University of Kent and Canterbury Christ Church UniversitySchool of Life Sciences, Keele UniversityDepartment of Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Allied Sciences, Rajarata University of Sri LankaCollege of Social Sciences and Languages, Mekelle UniversityRoyal Stoke University HospitalSchool of Medicine, RCSI BahrainState University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ) and Institute of Collective Health, Federal University of BahiaSchool of Medicine, Keele UniversityKent and Medway Medical School, University of Kent and Canterbury Christ Church UniversityAbstract Background More than one million people each year become infected by parasites that cause the disease cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL). This disease manifests as one or more skin lesions or ulcers that are slow to heal with variable response rates to drug treatments. Thus far, little attention has been paid to how the cultural effects of gender shape perceptions and experiences of CL. This review aims to bring together and analyse existing studies which use qualitative data to explore these differences. These studies offered insights into our specific research questions. Methods We conducted a systematic review of the literature pertaining to either CL or muco-cutaneous leishmaniasis (MCL) through EBSCO, EMBASE, Medline, Scopus and Web of Science databases. To meet inclusion criteria, articles had to be either qualitative or mixed-method with a qualitative component. They also had to include a reflection on how the gender of participants impacted the findings and addressed the lived experiences of CL. We did not exclude articles based on the language they were published in or in which country the study took place. Results From a total of 1589 potential articles, we found that thirteen met the inclusion criteria. These articles were published in English, Spanish or Portuguese and reported on studies carried out in various countries in Africa, Asia and South America. After using the principles of a meta-ethnography to analyse these studies, we generated several key themes. We found that health-seeking behaviours, treatment choices, stigma and the impact of scarring are shaped by gender in a variety of contexts. Conclusions Gender impacts on an individual’s experience of CL. In particular, women are more constricted in their health-seeking behaviours and experience more stigma both from the active lesions and from scarring than men. In many contexts, however, men are more at risk of becoming infected by the parasite that causes CL and may turn to more harmful or aggressive self-treatments. We recommend that future research on CL should consider the impact of gender as this can create very different experiences for individuals.https://doi.org/10.1186/s41256-022-00266-yCultural dimension of healthGenderQualitative researchStigmaHealth-seeking behaviourNeglected disease |
| spellingShingle | Brianne Wenning Helen Price Hasara Nuwangi Kelemework Tafere Reda Ben Walters Reem Ehsanullah Greice Viana Alina Andras Lisa Dikomitis Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review Global Health Research and Policy Cultural dimension of health Gender Qualitative research Stigma Health-seeking behaviour Neglected disease |
| title | Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review |
| title_full | Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review |
| title_fullStr | Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review |
| title_short | Exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis: a systematic literature review |
| title_sort | exploring the cultural effects of gender on perceptions of cutaneous leishmaniasis a systematic literature review |
| topic | Cultural dimension of health Gender Qualitative research Stigma Health-seeking behaviour Neglected disease |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s41256-022-00266-y |
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