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Postmenopausal hormone use and risk of heart disease

Postmenopausal hormone use and risk of heart disease

Although hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was thought to protect women's heart after menopause, new research has shown that HRT can raise the risk of heart attack in the initial phase and death in women with heart disease. Hormone replacement therapy is the use of hormones, synthetic or natural, to treat a woman who is lacking them. It is often prescribed in women after menopause. Menopause is the stage in a woman's life when menstruation stops permanently, usually around the age of 45 to 50 years. In a recent study, researchers at the Havard university in Boston, analysed 20 years data of nearly 2,500 women. More than half of the women on HRT had been taking oral estrogen, while 19% were on oral estrogen plus progestin and rest were on the estrogen patch. In those women who had heart disease, the risk of a fatal heart attack went up by 25 per cent in the first year on HRT, compared with those who never used hormones. But women on long term HRT experienced a 62 per cent decline in heart risk subsequently. Another study carried out at the Duke University in North Carolina, found out that women who started HRT after having a heart attack were 44 per cent more likely to have another heart attack or die than those who never used HRT. HRT is prescribed as a remedy for menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, mood changes, vaginal dryness and painful intercourse. It also prevents the bone loss i.e. osteoporosis. The reason behind HRT's association with an increased short-term risk in women with heart disease is still unclear.
Annals of Internal Medicine; July 2001, vol 135 (1)
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