Sex Differences in Cardiovascular Diseases and Vascular Function in Chronic Kidney Disease.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). We summarize the current knowledge of sex differences and associated vascular dysfunction in patients with CKD. We discuss mechanisms that may partially explain the sex differences in cardiovascular risk in CKD, which include sex differences in CKD progression that may uniquely impact the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis and gonadal hormone production. We also highlight the gaps and challenges in research on sex differences in CVD risk and women's vascular health in CKD, as well as specific future approaches to further research on this topic.