Benefits do not outweigh harms of using hormone therapy for prevention of chronic conditions
TUESDAY, Dec. 12, 2017 (HealthDay News) — The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends against use of hormone therapy for preventing chronic conditions in postmenopausal women. These findings form the basis of a final recommendation statement published in the Dec. 12 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
In order to update the 2012 USPSTF recommendations, David C. Grossman, M.D., M.P.H., from the USPSTF, and colleagues reviewed the benefits and harms of systematic hormone therapy for the prevention of chronic conditions in postmenopausal women.
The researchers note that although there are some benefits associated with use of hormone therapy to prevent chronic conditions, there are also well-documented harms. The magnitude of the benefits and harms of hormone therapy was determined to be small-to-moderate. Based on these findings, the USPSTF concluded that for most postmenopausal women with an intact uterus, combined estrogen and progestin had no net benefit for primary prevention of chronic conditions (D recommendation); for most postmenopausal women who have had a hysterectomy, estrogen alone had no net benefit for primary prevention of chronic conditions (D recommendation).
“In women who have already been through menopause, the use of hormone therapy to prevent chronic conditions has significant harms,” Grossman said in a statement. “But, the Task Force has several other recommendations on effective ways women can reduce their risk of chronic conditions.”
Recommendation Statement
Evidence Report
Editorial 1
Editorial 2
Editorial 3
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