The association of sex and gender with disordered eating behavior in youth with hypertension

Females have higher disordered eating behavior (DEB) prevalence versus males in the general population, but no data exist in adolescents with hypertension (HTN). Our objective was to determine the association of sex and gender with DEB prevalence in adolescents with HTN disorders. This was a secondary analysis of data from a prospective cross-sectional study of adolescents aged 11–18 years with HTN disorders. We excluded patients with diabetes mellitus, kidney failure/transplantation, or gastrostomy tube dependence. We collected data via abstraction and surveys, including the SCOFF questionnaire. Our exposures were self-reported sex and gender, and our outcome was SCOFF ≥ 2/5. We used bivariate generalized linear models. Of 74 participants, 61% identified as male, and 39% identified as female. DEB prevalence was 28%: 20% in males and 41% in females by sex and gender. Females had double the DEB risk versus males by sex (risk ratio [RR]: 2.07, 95% confidence level [CL]: 0.9996–4.28) and gender (RR: 2.02, 95% CL: 0.98–4.18), but both p > 0.05. Among adolescents with HTN disorders, while females had double the risk of screening positive for DEB versus males by sex and gender, the results were not statistically significant. Adolescents with HTN may benefit from routine DEB screening, especially those that identify as female, but larger studies are needed.