**3.2 Gender effect in the risk of AH in individuals with unfavourable levels of PSF**

In our study of the risk of AH development depending on PSF levels, we obtained the following results. Among men and women with HAL, the risk of AH was higher in the "stronger sex", with an increased risk demonstrated in the first five years of follow-up (**Figure 1**). The magnitude of risk in men was maximum after 10 years of follow-up (HR = 5.75), and in women in the first five years HR = 2.38 (95% CI: 1.13–4.99). And this is despite the fact that the prevalence of HAL is higher in women. Indeed, BigData analysis showed that age and male sex are associated risk factors for AH in individuals with anxiety disorders [24]. In a multivariate model adjusted for social characteristics and age, the risk of AH was also higher among men (HR = 4.57; 95% CI:2.07–10.08). While age was a determinant of AH risk in women (HR = 7.93; p < 0.01 for the oldest age category), marital

