Khaberni - A new study revealed no evidence proving that common hormone therapies for menopause affect - either increase or decrease - the risk of dementia.
Despite expert affirmation of the need for further research, the findings support current clinical guidelines that prescribe hormone therapy based on its benefits and other risks, not for the purpose of preventing dementia.
Hormone therapy, also known as hormone replacement therapy, aims to compensate for the natural decline in hormones during menopause, which helps alleviate symptoms such as hot flashes, mood swings, sleep disorders, and night sweats.
The therapy is available in various forms including tablets, gels, sprays, and creams, and may contain hormones estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone.
A research team from the United Kingdom, Ireland, Switzerland, Australia, and China conducted a comprehensive review of ten studies involving over a million women to verify whether hormone therapy use affects the risk of mild cognitive impairment or dementia in women before and after menopause.
The study included patients with mild cognitive impairment, and women with early menopause or early ovarian insufficiency (where the ovary stops functioning before the age of 40).
The analysis, published in the journal The Lancet Healthy Longevity concluded there is no "significant relationship" between hormone therapy and the risk of cognitive impairment or dementia, and that factors such as timing, duration, or type of therapy did not show significant effects.
The researchers emphasized that prescriptions should be based on perceived other benefits and risks, not on prevention of dementia, and called for high-quality studies to more accurately analyze the relationship, especially for women with early menopause or mild cognitive impairment .
Melissa Melville, the lead researcher of the study, said: "Dementia disproportionately affects women globally, necessitating understanding of influencing factors and finding ways to reduce the risk." She added: "The impact of hormone therapy on memory, cognition, and dementia risk remains one of the most debated issues in women's health, causing confusion among women and healthcare practitioners due to conflicting research and concerns".
Professor Amy Spector noted that the World Health Organization currently does not provide specific guidelines on hormone therapy and cognitive outcomes, expressing hope that the review will contribute to setting new expected guidelines by 2026.
Spector mentioned that "hormone therapy does not appear to affect the risk of dementia negatively or positively, but we need more long-term research to fully understand its effects".
Meanwhile, menopause specialist Louise Newson offered a different view, considering it "impossible to assert that hormone therapy does not affect the risk of dementia," pointing out that hormones play vital roles in brain functions.
Newson explained that modern hormone therapy uses chemically identical hormones to the natural ones, providing benefits that outweigh the risks, including improving symptoms such as memory issues and preventing osteoporosis and heart diseases.
