Women often use hormone therapy to relieve hot flashes and other menopause symptoms — and new research suggests patches or creams may be safer for their blood pressure than pills.
While the differences weren’t huge, women who took estrogen pills had a 14% higher risk of developing hypertension compared to those using skin patches or creams, the researchers reported Monday. Oral estrogen carried a 19% greater risk than vaginal versions.Hormone therapy has a mix of risks and benefits that mean it’s not for everyone. Today it’s prescribed not to prevent disease but to relieve menopause-related symptoms — generally using the lowest possible dose for the shortest time.
Different versions of hormone therapy may work better for different menopause symptoms, something the study didn’t address. But it adds important clues to understanding the complex relationship between hormone therapy and blood pressure, said Dr. Garima Sharma, a women’s heart specialist with Virginia’s Inova Health System and the American Heart Association.
Sharma would like to see a more rigorous trial that compares different hormone versions. But she pointed to a possible biological explanation: Maybe oral estrogen affects enzymes linked to blood pressure as it’s being processed, while skin and vaginal versions have much more limited activity in the body.
Still, “these findings are very clinically relevant,” Sharma said in an an email, and suggest it’s especially important to monitor blood pressure in women who use oral hormone therapy.The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
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