Many Women Continue Using Menopausal Hormone Therapy Beyond Age 65 Years

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 11, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Many women older than 65 years have validated menopausal symptoms severely affecting their quality of life and continue to use menopausal hormone therapy (MHT), according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Menopause Society, held from Sept. 10 to 14 in Chicago.

Meenakshi Goel, M.D., from University of Toronto, and colleagues examined the characteristics and motivations of Canadian women older than 65 years who are still using MHT. The analysis included 110 women seen at the Mature Women’s Health and Menopause Clinic at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.

The researchers found that the mean age of menopause was 50 years, but the mean age for MHT initiation was 52 years. Participants were taking MHT for an average of 18 years, with 42 percent taking MHT for ≥20 years. Controlling vasomotor symptoms (55 percent), better quality of life (29 percent), and a reduction in chronic pain and arthritis symptoms (7 percent) were the most common reasons for continuing MHT beyond 65 years. Nearly two-thirds of women (65.5 percent) never tried to stop MHT due to ongoing symptoms or for better quality of life, while 26.4 percent tried stopping MHT once and 8.2 percent attempted multiple times. More than one-third of women reported postmenopausal bleeding as the most common side effect. The most common adverse events were hip or other fractures (7.3 percent), and two women had ductal carcinoma in situ breast cancer while taking MHT.

“With extensive population-based studies proving various health benefits of MHT beyond 65 years, health practitioners should be more open to considering the continuation of MHT in this age group after appropriate counseling and periodic evaluations for adverse effects/contraindications,” the authors write.

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