Postmenopausal Women’s Long-Term Use Of Hormone Replacement Therapy May Increase Alzheimer’s Risk,

reports a new study suggests long-term “use of oral hormone therapy may be associated with a small increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease in postmenopausal women.” Researchers assessed nearly 85,000 postmenopausal women aged 70 to 80 who were “diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease between 1999 and 2013.” The study was published in BMJ. On its website, CNN (3/6, Lamotte) reports researchers “found an additional 9 to 18 per 10,000 women using hormone replacement could be diagnosed each year with Alzheimer’s beyond the number expected to develop the disease.” They also determined that the “association was highest for women who used hormones for 10 years or more and those who used an oral combination of estrogen-progestogen rather than estrogen alone.” BBC News Online (UK) (3/7) reports that despite the findings, physicians “are urging women not to be alarmed,” with the Royal College of General Practitioners arguing that “the research does not prove that HRT causes Alzheimer’s disease, and women currently taking it should continue to do so.” The Telegraph (UK) (3/6, Knapton) also reports. https://www.nbcnews.com/health/womens-health/long-term-use-hormone-therapy-pills-linked-increased-alzheimer-s-n980286