ScienceNot yet confirmed elsewhere1 publisher2 min readPublished
Women with autoimmune disease more often report being told their symptoms are psychological
Cambridge and UEA researchers found women with autoimmune disease 74% likelier than men to report a psychosomatic misdiagnosis. The figures rest on patients' own recall in a mostly female, mostly UK sample.
The Scientist · Science desk
34% of women reported having symptoms misdiagnosed as psychosomatic, compared with 22% of men. After accounting for age, disease group, continent and household finances, researchers said women were 74% more likely than men to report a psychosomatic misdiagnosis.
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Women reporting symptoms misdiagnosed as psychosomatic | 34% of women | 5 | |
| Men reporting the same, raw | 22% of men | 18 | |
| Women vs men, after adjusting | 74% more likely | 1 |
What happened
- In the unadjusted data, 43% of women and 33% of men reported being told their condition had a psychiatric cause.
- 34% of women reported symptoms misdiagnosed as psychosomatic, against 22% of men.
- After adjusting for age, disease group, continent and household finances, women were 46% more likely than men to report a psychiatric misdiagnosis.
- The most frequently reported time to diagnosis was under three months for men and one to two years for women.
Why it matters
- constraint The outcomes are what patients recall being told, so the survey measures reported experience and cannot count labels that were actually wrong.
- cost Longer waits for diagnosis mean longer waits for treatment, according to Sloan, and the delay falls on the patient, some of whom waited years.
- decision Clinicians facing symptoms they cannot see are asked to hold off on a psychological explanation; Sloan said it is "really important that symptoms are not automatically assumed to be psychological".
The unadjusted shares imply smaller gaps than the adjusted ones. Women's 43% against men's 33% is about 30% higher [17], and 34% against 22% is about 55% higher [18]. The adjusted figures are 46% [6] and 74% [1].
How to compare them depends on the kind of ratio. Read as ratios of proportions, the adjusted figures are larger than the raw ones. Read as odds ratios, they are a little smaller than the raw values of about 1.53 and 1.83 that the rounded percentages give [19][20]. Either way, a sizeable gap survives adjustment for age, disease group, continent and household finances [6].
The Guardian's account does not say which ratio was used, how participants were recruited or how many were men. That count sets how steady the male percentages are.
Disease mix is the obvious confounder. Almost a quarter of the women had autoimmune thyroid disease and one in seven had systemic lupus [8]. Among the men, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis and antiphospholipid syndrome were the most common conditions [9]. Autoimmune conditions often present with symptoms common in the wider population [15], so the adjustment for disease group matters here.
The thing this study cannot tell you is whether any of the labels were wrong. Participants reported what they were told [4]. The wait figures are likewise the most frequent answer in each group, not averages [7].
Why the gap exists is the team's hypothesis, and a survey of recollections cannot test it. The study team said "broader diagnostic challenges affect both sexes" but "females may face additional disadvantages" [10]. They added: "Historical biases in medicine may persist, including positioning females as less credible and emotional reporters of symptoms than males." [11]
Lead author Melanie Sloan said the findings "highlight that psychological or mental health explanations can be given too soon" [12]. She added: "This is true for both sexes, but our study suggests that females may be particularly vulnerable to these types of misdiagnoses." [13]
What to watch
- The full eClinicalMedicine tables should show whether the adjusted figures are odds ratios or ratios of proportions, and how many men took part.
- A follow-up that checks patients' reported labels against medical records would show how many were actually wrong.
- A sample with more men and more patients outside the UK would test whether the gap holds beyond this group.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence55
- Adoption
- Insufficient
- Hype gap+15
- Incentives
- Insufficient
- Confidence50
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
After accounting for factors including age, disease group, continent and household finances, researchers said women were 74% more likely than men to report a psychosomatic misdiagnosis.
- [2]
The study, by the University of Cambridge and University of East Anglia and published in the Lancet eClinicalMedicine journal, included more than 6,600 people with autoimmune conditions.
- [4]
Researchers found 43% of women reported being told their condition was down to a psychiatric cause, compared with 33% of men.
- [5]
34% of women reported having symptoms misdiagnosed as psychosomatic, compared with 22% of men.
- [6]
After accounting for age, disease group, continent and household finances, researchers said women were 46% more likely than men to report having received a psychiatric misdiagnosis.
- [7]
Among men, the most frequently reported time to diagnosis was less than three months; among women it was one to two years.
- [8]
Almost a quarter of the women had autoimmune thyroid disease, and one in seven women in the study had systemic lupus.
- [9]
Among male patients, rheumatoid arthritis, vasculitis and antiphospholipid syndrome were the most common conditions.
- [10]
The study team said "broader diagnostic challenges affect both sexes" but "females may face additional disadvantages".
- [11]
The study team said: "Historical biases in medicine may persist, including positioning females as less credible and emotional reporters of symptoms than males."
- [12]
Lead author Melanie Sloan said the findings "highlight that psychological or mental health explanations can be given too soon".
- [13]
Sloan said: "This is true for both sexes, but our study suggests that females may be particularly vulnerable to these types of misdiagnoses."
- [14]
Sloan said some women were forced to wait years before finally getting a diagnosis, causing long delays to treatment for their condition.
- [15]
Autoimmune conditions can be complex to diagnose as they often present with symptoms common in the wider population.
- [16]
Sloan said it is "really important that symptoms are not automatically assumed to be psychological".
- [17]
Women's raw rate of reported psychiatric attribution (43%) is about 30% higher than men's (33%).
- [18]
Women's raw rate of reported psychosomatic misdiagnosis (34%) is about 55% higher than men's (22%).
- [19]
The raw odds ratio for reported psychiatric attribution, women versus men, is about 1.53, computed from rounded percentages.
- [20]
The raw odds ratio for reported psychosomatic misdiagnosis, women versus men, is about 1.83, computed from rounded percentages.
Sources
1 independent publisher whose own reporting we read for this story.
- theguardian.comWomen ‘more likely to be told autoimmune conditions are psychological’
1 article · October 12, 2026
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