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Cultural Biases and Clinical Variation
Óscar Gasulla1,2, Antonio Sarría-Santamera3, Ferran A Mazaira-Font4
1Hospital Universitari de Bellvitge, Universitat de Barcelona, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, 08907 Barcelona, Spain.
Clinics and Practice
|December 24, 2025
Summary
Cultural biases may explain variations in women's and psychiatric disease diagnoses. This study suggests cultural taboos and gender biases contribute to unexplained clinical variation, impacting healthcare equity.
Area of Science:
- Health Services Research
- Medical Sociology
- Public Health
Background:
- Investigates the influence of cultural biases on clinical variation in healthcare.
- Examines potential disparities in disease diagnosis and treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine if cultural factors contribute to unexplained clinical variation.
- To analyze diagnostic incidence across different disease categories and geographical regions.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective cohort study using a Spanish primary care database.
- Cross-sectional analysis of diagnostic incidence and coefficient of variation (CV).
- Multivariate linear regression adjusted for socio-demographics and healthcare system proxies.
Main Results:
- No significant variability found between generic and specialized diseases.
- Women's and psychiatric diseases exhibited consistently higher CVs (p < 0.05).
- 20-30% of clinical variation in these groups remained unexplained.
Conclusions:
- Findings suggest cultural taboos and gender biases may drive unjustified clinical variation.
- Cultural bias is a plausible explanatory factor for observed healthcare disparities.
- Further research is needed to establish causality and address inequities.
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