Effects of postmenopausal hot flushes and hormone therapy on quality of life and cardiovascular autonomic function
Year: 2014
Type: dissertation
Study design: Clinical Trial
Abstract: Hot flushes, the most characteristic symptoms in menopause, are encountered by c.a. 80% of women. Hot flushes and other menopausal complaints can significantly impair a woman s quality of life. Additionally, the majority of women experience premenstrual symptoms in their fertile age. Due to the resemblance between premenstrual and menopausal symptoms, women with severe premenstrual symptoms might fear for an increased risk of developing menopausal complaints, such as vasomotor symptoms. It is, however, unclear why some women experience intolerable hot flushes while others remain completely asymptomatic. Hot flushes are characterised by cardiovascular reactions such as rapid episodes of reddening of skin and palpitations. Thus, women with or without hot flushes may differ in their cardiovascular reactivity and responses to hormone therapy. The present study was designed to investigate the impact of hot flushes and different forms of hormone therapy on health-related quality of life and cardiovascular autonomic function. Therefore, 150 healthy, recently postmenopausal women showing a large variation in hot flushes were studied before and during six months of hormone therapy. Hot flushes were evaluated prospectively with a two-week hot flush diary. The relationship between a history of premenstrual symptoms and the postmenopausal quality of life and hot flushes was also assessed. The cardiovascular autonomic function was studied with a standardised test series in controlled laboratory settings. Hot flushes were important determinants for the decreased health-related quality of life in menopause. Previous premenstrual symptoms lacked correlation with the severity of postmenopausal hot flushes but associated with deterioration of health-related quality of life, seen as poor sleep, depressive feelings and impaired memory and concentration. Women with hot flushes reacted with more tachycardia and slightly blunted parasympathetic activity in heart rate responses to cardiovascular autonomic testing compared with asymptomatic women. In a randomized study, all hormone therapy regimens alleviated hot flushes and other menopausal symptoms equally effectively. In women with pre-treatment hot flushes, hormone therapy improved health-related quality of life in terms of sleep, anxiety and fears, memory and concentration, and general health. Hot flushes were accompanied with lowered resting blood pressures but increases in blood pressure responses to physical strain during all hormone therapy regimens. Estradiol treatment lowered resting heart rate and reduced maximal heart rate in response to physical strain in women with pre-treatment hot flushes. This beneficial effect on heart rate was attenuated by adding medroxyprogesterone acetate to estradiol treatment. In conclusion, the hot flush status and hormone therapy contribute to cardiovascular autonomic function. Hot flushes seem to associate with slightly pronounced sympathetic responses in autonomic regulation of heart rate and blood pressure, which can be considered unbeneficial for cardiovascular function. This possibly unfavourable sympathetic activity can be reduced with estradiol treatment especially in women with hot flushes, who are potential candidates for hormone therapy in clinical practice. Hot flushes impair the health-related quality of life in recently postmenopausal women, but can be effectively alleviated with hormone therapy. Premenstrual symptoms do not predict severe hot flushes in menopause, which is comforting for women having troublesome premenstrual symptoms.
Source: Työväentutkimus Vuosikirja
Author: Hanna Hautamäki
Language: English
Subfield: Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2164741794