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BACKGROUND: Some research suggests that men and women may experience Angina Pectoris (AP) differently. More research is needed to characterize AP symptoms by gender and to familiarize health care providers with them, to enable proper education, diagnostic evaluation and timely management. OBJECTIVE: This study examines gender differences in the description, intensity and location of AP in patients with CHD. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study was performed to compare AP patients according to gender. SETTINGS: This study was performed on patients residing in Tehran, who were being treated in a hospital and were admitted to cardiac units. PARTICIPANTS: Five hundred patients with AP were selected. The participants were patients with AP who were diagnosed with CHD based on documented results from an angiography. METHOD: Outpatients who were admitted to the cardiac units were screened. Informed consent was obtained from all study participants, who then completed the Iranian version of the AP characteristics questionnaire. RESULTS: Women were significantly more likely to feel pain in the left arm and hand, odds ratio 1.5 (95% CI=1.0-2.1, P=0.04), left scapula, odds ratio 2.3 (95% CI=1.6-3.5, P<0.001), and neck, odds ratio 2.8 (95% CI=1.9-4.1, P<0.0001), while controlling for demographic and clinical factors. Women were significantly more likely to choose the possible pain descriptors for describing their AP and reported significantly greater intensity than men for all the pain descriptors. Significantly higher scores for sensory, affective, total and NRS (Numeric Rating Scale) scores were observed in women (P<0.001). Multiple linear regression analyses revealed that gender remained a statistically significant predictor of pain scores and NRS, while controlling for demographic and clinical factors. CONCLUSION: Women and men differ with respect to description, intensity and location of AP. Educating the general public and informing health care providers about gender variation in AP may help to decrease delays in seeking medical care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]