The Claim

In non-athlete transgender women undergoing long-term gender-affirming hormone therapy (average duration 14.4 years), maximal oxygen consumption (VO2peak) is strongly positively correlated with fat-free mass normalized by height squared (r = 0.7388, p < 0.01), a relationship that is not present in cisgender women or cisgender men, indicating a unique influence of body composition on cardiopulmonary capacity in this population.

Source: Cardiopulmonary capacity and muscle strength in transgender women on long-term gender-affirming hormone therapy: a cross-sectional study

What the research says

Supports is higher

Support is ahead, but a single strong opposing study can change this.

Supports
44score
Challenges
0score

These are independent scores, not a percentage. Higher-grade studies count more, so a single strong opposing study can outweigh several weaker ones.

Correlation
1 study reviewed
In plain English

For transgender women on long-term hormone therapy, how well their bodies use oxygen during exercise is closely linked to their muscle mass relative to height — but this doesn’t seem to be the case for cisgender men or women.

See the scientific wording

In non-athlete transgender women on long-term gender-affirming hormone therapy (average 14.4 years), maximal oxygen consumption (VO2peak) shows a strong positive correlation with fat-free mass divided by height squared (r=0.7388, p<0.01), a relationship not observed in cisgender women or cisgender men, suggesting body composition may uniquely influence cardiopulmonary capacity in this population.

What the research says

1 study
  1. Study: Cardiopulmonary capacity and muscle strength in transgender women on long-term gender-affirming hormone therapy: a cross-sectional study

    The study found that in transgender women on long-term hormone therapy, how well their heart and lungs work during exercise is strongly linked to their lean body mass, more so than in cisgender men or women. This supports the idea that body composition matters more for fitness in this group.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed & 1 supporting studies

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