To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Oral Hormone Replacement Therapy May Double Risk of Blood Clots in Women URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/2222D2.htm Doctor's Guide May 26, 2008
NEW YORK -- May 26, 2008 -- Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) given in skin patches may cause fewer blood clots than HRT given orally, according to a report published in the May 20 online edition of the British Medical Journal. The study also warns that women who take the oral form of HRT more than double their risk of developing a blood clot. Study authors reviewed data from 8 observational studies and 9 randomised, controlled trials. They found that women taking the oral form of the drug were 2 to 3 times more likely to develop a blood clot and that the risk was significantly higher during the first year of treatment. Past treatment was not associated with increased risk. If a woman was overweight or genetically predisposed toward having blood clots, the researchers noted that her risk increased further. HRT given as a skin patch showed no significant increase in the risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). The authors warned, however, that the results should be treated with caution because the data are from observational studies; no trials have yet investigated the effects of oestrogen patches on the risk of VTE. They suggested that the reason for the difference in risk of VTE between the oral and the skin patch form of the medication might be due to the different way oestrogen is absorbed into the blood stream. Overall, the results suggest that HRT patches may be safer than HRT given orally with regard to thrombotic risk. Since VTE has become the major adverse effect of short-term oral oestrogen therapy, reducing thrombotic risk could have important clinical implications. However, the authors concluded that more research is needed to confirm the apparent safety of oestrogen patches with respect to this risk. In an accompanying Editorial, Helen Roberts, Senior Lecturer in Women's Health, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand, discusses the need for more research into the association between VTE and oestrogen patches. "In the meantime, we can advise healthy menopausal women, aged 50 to 59, that the risk of VTE with oral preparations is 11 additional cases per 10,000 women per year for combined therapy [oestrogen and progesterone or progestin] and 2 additional cases per 10,000 women per year for oestrogen only," Roberts concludes. SOURCE: British Medical Journal --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.