HRT

‘Like a roadmap that is ever changing’

Posted by Liz on Jun 25, 2008 in heart disease, HRT | 0 comments

The GPS certainly comes in handy when you’re in unfamiliar territory. But what happens if the territory changes suddenly, new streets replace old, and you’re unable to turn around?

Before menopause, women are protected from conditions such as heart disease, heart attack and stroke but lose this protection afterward.

Missouri University scientists believe that they’ve uncovered one of the reasons why: the body’s natural adaptation to a loss of estrogen. They say that animal study findings suggest that the vascular system depends on estrogen to maintain the status quo.  With a decline in estrogen production, the body loses its ability to regulate and maintain blood vessels the old way, and adapts by creating new “side streets” of vessels.  Women have are at increased risk for developing disease in these new vessels with symptoms that are subtler and harder to identify.

Study co-author Virginia Huxley, a professor at the Missouri University’s School of Medicine, likens blood vessels to highways that transport oxygen and other nutrients. She says that these roads are ‘ever changing’ after estrogen production halts. Importantly, the research team believes that adding estrogen to a system that has learned to adapt without it can upset the transition and lead to complications. This may be why HRT after menopause is counterintuitive and downright dangerous.

A wise man once wrote…

Posted by Liz on Jun 23, 2008 in HRT | 0 comments

The important thing is to never stop questioning.   Albert Einstein

HRT has been highly touted as an elixir for menopausal mood issues. However, a study published in the May/June issue of Menopause journal suggests otherwise.

Researchers examined the influence of hormone therapy on health-related quality of life in 3,102 women participating in the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation (SWAN is an ongoing investigation of physical, psychological, biological and social changes that occur in women during their middle years and is now in its 11th year.)  Study participants were asked to complete annual questionnaires that addressed hormone use, menstrual bleeding, symptoms, and health related quality of life (i.e. perception of physical and mental health over time).

The results?  Hormone therapy was not associated with overall improvements in quality of life measures in the general study population except in women who were experiencing symptoms at least or more than six times a week.

These findings suggest that although some women may experience improvements in their mental and physical health by taking HRT, a majority will not. Obviously, this is only one study. But it certainly provides some interesting food for thought that raises some interesting questions about the pros and cons of HRT.