Despite Increases in Dermatologist Representation, Women Lag Behind in Dermatology Research Participation

A new study published in the International Journal of Women’s Dermatology has found that although women’s representation among dermatologists has increased in recent years, the share of women participating in dermatology academic research has decreased.

According to the study, women’s representation among dermatologists in the United States has significantly increased from 41 percent in 2009 to 52.2 percent in 2023. However, this representation does not match women’s authorship in academic dermatology research publications. In examining more than 14,000 articles in the top five global dermatology journals over the past 15 years, the authors found women only represented 43 percent of first author designations and 31 percent of senior author designations. This trend analysis revealed an overall global decrease in women senior authorship, particularly in the United States.

The authors believe their findings provide a unique snapshot of women’s representation among the most prestigious scholars in the field of dermatology. They state future studies are needed to further track trends of women first and senior authorships that validate and expand on their study’s results.