After Hysterectomy, Estrogen May Help Heart (More from the government's "Women's Health Initiative")

NY Times ^ | February 14, 2006 | DENISE GRADY

[neverdem]

A new report suggests that for women who have had hysterectomies, taking estrogen does not increase the risk of heart disease and may even protect the heart in those who are younger, from 50 to 59.

The findings, being published today in The Archives of Internal Medicine, concern the use of estrogen alone and differ from earlier studies of estrogen and progesterone. The studies of combined hormones found that they increased the risk of heart disease, breast cancer and other ailments.

The new results lend support to a theory held by some researchers, that hormone therapy may help prevent heart disease if women start it early in menopause, but may have no benefit or even cause harm if women start it later. The theory has not been proved.

The new results do not warrant any changes in the current guidelines for hormone use, said Dr. JoAnn E. Manson, an author of the study and a professor of medicine at Harvard. The guidelines say hormones should be used only to relieve symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, not to prevent heart disease, and should be taken in the lowest doses and for the shortest time possible.

The new report does not apply to most menopausal women, just to those who have had hysterectomies, the only women in the study. The difference is important because the two groups take different forms of hormone therapy. Women who have had hysterectomies can take estrogen alone. But other women cannot, because it can cause uterine cancer. For them, estrogen must be combined with another hormone, a form of progesterone, to counter the cancer-causing effect.

The study being reported today included 10,739 women 50 to 79 who had hysterectomies. It was part of the Women's Health Initiative, a large federally financed study.

The part of...

[neverdem]

British Parliament Votes to Ban Smoking in Public

House clears bill limiting gun queries (VA)

Natural substance lowers cholesterol better than statins

If policosanol works that well, and with the new prescription drug benefit, it might be smart if the government paid for a "large, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials directly comparing the various products... needed to confirm these findings."

FReepmail me if you want on or off my health and science ping list.

[djf]

Yup. As far as the HRT thingy, they have basically done a complete 180 on it.

So I can't help but wonder how much else they have been telling us that's dead wrong.
I guess I get very upset about the medical "experts", because my wife had a little thyroid problem, went to the doctors religiously for it 3 or 4 times a year, then basically fell over dead from an aneurysm still young and very beautiful at 41 years old.

BUNCHA HACKS! I HATE THEM FOR IT!

[angelsonmyside]

Saw this Dr today that did the study. Heck they could have saved millions on the study. All they had to do was ask me. They kept me from having a heart attack and probably kept me from punching a few people too.