The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) is a long-term, prospective, experimental study that addresses the use of HRT for the primary prevention of CHD among healthy, postmenopausal women. Data collection was recently suspended in the continuous combined HRT group (CEEs 0.625 mg/day with MPA 2.5 mg each day) after 5.2 years, and the results of this [...]

The Postmenopausal Estrogen/Progestin Interventions (PEPI) trial was an experimental study primarily designed to evaluate the effect of HRT on cardiovascular disease. This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial compared estrogen monotherapy with continuous or cyclic estrogen-plus-pro-gestin combination therapy. Two forms of progestins were assessed, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and micronized progesterone (MP). This study confirmed that all HRT [...]

The administration of HRT has been shown to counteract many of these negative effects of menopause that increase the risk of CHD. However, the combination of hormones, dosage, and route of administration can affect the outcomes (Table 1).

INTRODUCTION Historically, heart disease has been viewed as a health problem of middle-aged men, and misperceptions concerning the prevalence of cardiovascular disease among women still exist. However, cardiovascular disease is a significant health problem among women. The incidence of cardiovascular disease in men and women equalizes after the age of 65, and the prevalence among [...]