Medically Reviewed by Jenna J. MacLennan, MD

The results from a new study published in the medical journal JAMA show that for most women, benefits outweigh the risks when it comes to menopausal hormone therapy for the treatment of menopause symptoms. For millions of women, these findings could be life-changing.

“Researchers found that, among women below the age of 60, menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) has a low risk of adverse events and is safe for treating a variety of menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats and vaginal dryness,” explains McLeod OB/GYN Dr. Jenna MacLennan. “This is a significant turn of events, considering that, for more than two decades, a large number of health care providers have discouraged women from using MHT, and many women were forced to navigate the complex symptoms of menopause without the benefit of highly effective hormone treatments.”

Why did the recommendations change?

This announcement is quite the departure from the advice many women have been given in the past, which was based on a 1992 landmark women’s health study called the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI). The study enrolled 160,000 postmenopausal women between the ages of 50 and 79. But in 2002, part of the study’s menopause hormone trial was abruptly stopped after monitoring data suggested that women in the hormone group had an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, pulmonary embolism and breast cancer. Overnight, millions of women and their doctors abandoned the drugs that had provided relief for menopausal symptoms.

Now, a long-term follow-up of the WHI shows that reaction was largely overblown. The new research found that for many younger menopausal women — typically those under 60 — the benefits of the drugs probably outweigh the risks for the short-term treatment of menopause symptoms.

What does MHT do, and how does it help?

When a woman transitions to menopause, her ovaries stop making high levels of estrogen, which can cause uncomfortable symptoms including mood swings, depression, insomnia due to night sweats, and uncontrollable hot flashes, just to name a few. Menopausal hormone therapy, or MHT, is a medical treatment that helps women manage these symptoms. MHT can be prescribed as a combination of estrogen and progesterone or as estrogen alone, depending on whether or not the patient has had a hysterectomy. There are various methods of administration which can be individualized based on patient symptoms, history and overall goals.

While there are some risks associated with MHT, this recent review of scientific evidence found that MHT is an effective and safe treatment for healthy women, especially if started before menopause or within 10 years of their last period. The North American Menopause Society recommends using MHT at the lowest effective dose for the shortest amount of time, with regular medical reevaluations and adjustments made as necessary.

What do these new findings mean for women?

According to Dr. JoAnn Manson, the study’s first author and a world-renowned specialist in preventive medicine, “Women in early menopause with bothersome symptoms should not be afraid to take hormone therapy to treat them, and clinicians should not be afraid to prescribe them.”

To learn more about MHT, speak with an OB/GYN near you.