Original researchMenopausal symptoms in older women and the effects of treatment with hormone therapy☆
Section snippets
Materials and methods
The design, methods, and main findings of the Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study have been previously published.3 The Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study was approved by the Institutional Review Boards at all participating clinical centers. Participants were postmenopausal women less than 80 years with an intact uterus and established coronary heart disease (evidenced by one or more of the following: myocardial infarction, coronary artery bypass graft surgery,
Results
Participants ranged in age from 55 to 88 years, with a mean age of 67 years. The majority of women were white and relatively well educated. All women in the trial had a uterus, and 99% had ovaries. On average, menopause had occurred 18 years prior to the start of the trial. At baseline, there were no differences between the treatment groups in demographics, reproductive history, body mass index, or habits (Table 1).
Symptoms typically associated with menopause were relatively common among the
Discussion
The majority of published investigations of menopausal-type symptoms in women have concentrated on midlife women between the ages of 45 and 60 years.4, 5, 6, 7 The average age of participants in the Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study was 67 years, and the oldest participant was 79 years old, making this a unique population in which to study the prevalence of typical menopausal symptoms. The randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled design of the trial is also the most appropriate
References (17)
- et al.
Oestrogen therapy and the menopausal syndrome
Clin Obstet Gynecol
(1977) - et al.
Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study (HERS)Design, methods and baseline characteristics
Control Clin Trials
(1998) The cross-sectional legacyAn introduction to longitudinal studies of the climacteric
Maturitas
(1992)- et al.
Symptom relief and side effects of postmenopausal hormonesResults from the Postmenopausal Estrogen/Progestin Interventions Trial
Obstet Gynecol
(1998) - et al.
Prevalence of urinary incontinence and associated risk factors in postmenopausal women. Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study (HERS) Research Group
Obstet Gynecol
(1999) - et al.
When does estrogen replacement therapy improve sleep quality?
Am J Obstet Gynecol
(1998) - et al.
Continuous, combined hormone replacementRandomized comparison of transdermal and oral preparations
Obstet Gynecol
(1999) - et al.
Two-year prospective, randomized trial comparing an innovative twice-a-week progestin regimen with a continuous combined regime as postmenopausal hormone therapy
Fert Steril
(1999)
Cited by (160)
The role of ovarian hormones in the pathophysiology of perimenopausal sleep disturbances: A systematic review
2022, Sleep Medicine ReviewsManaging menopausal vasomotor symptoms in older women
2021, MaturitasCitation Excerpt :In the Multiple Outcomes of Raloxifene Evaluation osteoporosis treatment trial, 11.8 % of women, mean age 62.7 at baseline, and 10–19 years since menopause, reported bothersome hot flushes; by > 20 years after menopause, 7.8 % still reported VMS [24]. In the Heart and Estrogen Progestin Replacement Study (HERS), a secondary cardiac prevention trial, participants at baseline were mean age 67 and 18 years since menopause; 16 % reported VMS [25]. In the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) clinical trials, 4.8 % of women age > 70 years in the combined therapy arm and 8.7 % of those in the estrogen only trial reported moderate to severe VMS at baseline [7].
Menopause as a Manifestation of Aging
2020, Endocrinology of Aging: Clinical Aspects in Diagrams and ImagesMenarche/menopause
2018, Encyclopedia of ReproductionMenopausal hormone therapy and cancer risk: An overestimated risk?
2017, European Journal of CancerNeohesperidin suppresses osteoclast differentiation, bone resorption and ovariectomised-induced osteoporosis in mice
2017, Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology
- ☆
The Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study was funded by Wyeth-Ayerst Research.