(NaturalNews) Hormone replacement therapy provides no overall health benefit to postmenopausal women but may increase the risk of major cardiovascular events, according to the results of a study published in the
British Medical Journal.The WISDOM study, initiated in 1999, was discontinued when a study by the 2002 Women's Health Initiative found that hormone replacement therapy increased older women's risk of heart attack and stroke. The WISDOM results, now released, support the findings of the Women's Health Initiative but concluded that the risks of
hormone replacement therapy may not apply to younger women using the
therapy to lessen the symptoms of
menopause.
Researchers studied 5,692 healthy
women with an average age of 63 from
Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom for approximately 12 months. Women who were treated with a combined hormone therapy of progesterone and estrogen were found to have significantly more blood clots and major cardiovascular events (angina, heart attacks and sudden coronary death) than women who were treated with a placebo. The rates for cerebrovascular
disease, cancer, fracture and overall death were the same in both groups, however. The therapy provided no overall benefit in prevention of disease.
The study authors cautioned that its
results do not necessarily apply to younger
menopausal women, since the average participant in the WISDOM study was 15 years past menopause. Recent studies suggest that
hormone replacement therapy may, in fact, have a cardiovascular
health benefit for women at the time of menopause, in addition to relieving
symptoms such as hot flashes and night sweats. The authors said that further
research will be needed to fully understand the therapy's effects on younger women.
According to an accompanying editorial by Dr. Helen Roberts of the University of Auckland in Australia, the current study does not challenge the standard medical advice for postmenopausal women. Short-term use of hormone replacement therapy is unlikely to pose significant health
risks, she says, but long-term use is not recommended.
Have comments on this article? Post them here:
people have commented on this article.
Email this article to a friend
Share this article on: 
Now Available from 
