Evaluating the Effects of Hormone Replacement Therapy on Brain Function (The WHIMS-MRI Study)
Summary
A silent stroke is a type of stroke that does not produce any severe symptoms, but may slightly affect memory or thinking abilities. Women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may have a higher risk of experiencing a silent stroke than women who do not use HRT. This study will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine the prevalence of silent strokes and other changes in brain tissue in women who participated in the Women's Health Initiative Memory Study (WHIMS), a study in which women received HRT, either as estrogen alone or as estrogen and progesterone combined, or placebo.
Description
A silent stroke is a type of stroke that occurs as a result of blockage in the small blood vessels in the brain. Older adults, in particular, are at risk for silent strokes. This type of stroke does not cause any of the typical stroke symptoms, such as vision problems, facial numbness, or walking difficulties; however, subtle changes in a person's cognitive ability or memory may occur following a silent stroke. It is important to diagnose this type of stroke because several occurrences of silent strokes can increase the risk of having a more serious, and possibly fatal, stroke. As women go through menopause, many choose to take HRT to relieve common menopausal symptoms, including hot flashes and mood swings. Unfortunately, the use of HRT may place women at higher risk of experiencing a silent stroke. This study will assess whether women who take HRT, either as estrogen alone or as estrogen and progesterone combined, have a greater risk of silent stroke than women who do not take HRT. Study researchers will also examine changes in brain tissue and changes in the areas of the brain associated with thinking and memory.
This study will enroll women who are participating in the WHIMS study. Participants will attend one study visit at which time a brain MRI scan will be completed. Study researchers will analyze participants' study data from the WHIMS study and the Women's Health Initiative Study of Cognitive Aging (WHISCA) study, an ancillary WHIMS study that examined the effects of HRT on memory and cognition.
Study Design
Observational Model: Case Control, Time Perspective: Cross-Sectional
Conditions
Hormone Replacement Therapy
Location
Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Winston-Salem
North Carolina
United States
27157
Status
Completed
Source
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Results (where available)
Links
- Source: http://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT00739869
- Information obtained from ClinicalTrials.gov on July 15, 2010
Medical and Biotech [MESH] Definitions
Hormone Replacement Therapy
Therapeutic use of hormones to alleviate the effects of hormone deficiency.
Enzyme Replacement Therapy
Therapeutic replacement or supplementation of defective or missing enzymes to alleviate the effects of the enzyme deficiency (e.g., GLUCOSYLCERAMIDASE replacement for GAUCHER DISEASE).
Estrogen Replacement Therapy
The use of hormonal agents with estrogen-like activity in postmenopausal or other estrogen-deficient women to alleviate effects of hormone deficiency, such as vasomotor symptoms, DYSPAREUNIA, and progressive development of OSTEOPOROSIS. This may also include the use of progestational agents in combination therapy.
Neoadjuvant Therapy
Preliminary cancer therapy (chemotherapy, radiation therapy, hormone/endocrine therapy, immunotherapy, hyperthermia, etc.) that precedes a necessary second modality of treatment.
Methyltestosterone
A synthetic hormone used for androgen replacement therapy and as an hormonal antineoplastic agent (ANTINEOPLASTIC AGENTS, HORMONAL).
Clinical Trials
Development and Evaluation of a Hormone Replacement Therapy Decision-Aid
The decision regarding the use of post-menopausal estrogen hormone replacement therapy (HT) is complex because patients must balance the short and long-term risks and benefits. Information...
Neural Changes in the Aging Auditory System
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on hearing in post-menopausal women.
Hormone Replacement Therapy and Prothrombotic Variants
To examine in postmenopausal women the potential interactions of hormone replacement therapy with other blood clotting factors on the risk of cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack o...
Reduction of Triglycerides in Women on Hormone Replacement Therapy
The purpose of this study is to test the effect of lifestyle intervention on subclinical cardiovascular disease measures in women taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT).
Women's Estrogen/Progestin Lipid Lowering Hormone Atherosclerosis Regression Trial (WELL-HART)
To determine the effects, in postmenopausal women, of hormone replacement therapy on progression/regression of coronary heart disease, as measured by quantitative angiography.
PubMed Articles
Progression of Chiari I malformations while on growth hormone replacement: a report of two cases.
PURPOSE: The effect of growth hormone replacement on Chiari I malformation (CIM) associated with growth hormone deficiency is not clear. CASE REPORTS: Two patients are presented, who were found to hav...
Contraceptives and hormone replacement have been extensively used since the late 1950s. However, adverse effects are common and include an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, including thrombo-...
The estrogen elixir: hormone replacement therapy in american medicine and culture.
Breast Cancer Incidence and Hormone Replacement Therapy in Canada.
Background In 2002, results of the Women's Health Initiative clinical trial indicated that the long-term risks of combined estrogen and progestin hormone replacement therapy outweighed the health bene...
Vulvovaginal candidiasis in postmenopausal women: the role of hormone replacement therapy.
: This study aimed to explore the role of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in susceptibility to vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) in a private vulval disease referral practice.
