Abstract
The purpose of this review is to investigate to what extent menopause is related to ocular pathological changes and whether hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can delay these changes to occur. This review of international bibliography reveals that hormonal changes during menopause are responsible for changes in lachrymal secretion, quality and quantity of tears, changes in conjunctiva and cornea, the development and progress of cataract, changes in intraocular pressure, the risk for glaucoma, the age-related macular degeneration, and changes in ocular blood flow.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Kanski JJ (2004) Clinical ophthalmology. Butterworth-Heinemann, Oxford
Altintas O, Caglar Y, Yuksel N, Demirci A, Karabas L (2004) The effects of menopause and hormone replacement therapy on quality and quantity of tear intraocular pressure and ocular blood flow. Ophthalmologica 218:120–129
Affinito P, Di Spiezio Sardo A, Di Carlo C, Sammartino A, Tommaselli GA, Bifulco G, Loffredo A, Loffredo M, Nappi C (2003) Effects of hormone replacement therapy on ocular function in postmenopause. Menopause 10:482–487
Pelit A, Bagis T, Kayaselcuk F, Dursun D, Akova Y, Aydin P (2003) Tear function tests and conjunctival impression cytology before and after hormone replacement therapy in postmenopausal women. Eur J Ophthalmol 13:337–342
Kuscu NK, Toprak AB, Vatansever S, Koyuncu FM, Guler C (2003) Tear function changes of postmenopausal women in response to hormone replacement therapy. Maturitas 44:63–68
Taner P, Akarsu C, Atasoy P, Bayram M, Ergin A (2004) The effects of hormone replacement therapy on ocular surface and tear function tests in postmenopausal women. Ophthalmologica 218:257–259
Marcozzi G, Liberati V, Madia F, Pizzinga A, de Feo G (2003) Effect of hormone replacement therapy on lacrimal fluid peroxidase activity in woman. Maturitas 45:225–229
Marcozzi G, Liberati V, Madia F, Centofanti M, de Feo G (2003) Age- and gender-related differences in human lacrimal fluid peroxidase activity. Ophthalmologica 217:294–297
Freeman EE, Munoz B, Schein OD, West SK (2004) Incidence and progression of lens opacities: effect of hormone replacement therapy and reproductive factors. Epidemiology 15:451–457
Defay R, Pinchinat S, Lumbroso S, Sultan C, Papoz L, Delcourt C (2003) Relationships between hormonal status and cataract in french postmenopausal women: the POLA study. Ann Epidemiol 13:638–644
Lee AJ, Mitchell P, Rochtchina E, Healey PR (2003) Female reproductive factors and open angle glaucoma: the Blue Mountains Eye Study. Br J Ophthalmol 87:1324–1328
Tomany SC, Wang JJ, Van Leeuwen R, Klein R, Mitchell P, Vingerling JR, Klein BE, Smith W, De Jong PT (2004) Risk factors for incident age-related macular degeneration: pooled findings from 3 continents. Ophthalmology 111:1280–1287
Toker E, Yenice O, Akpinar I, Aribal E, Kazokoglu H (2003) The influence of sex hormones on ocular blood flow in women. Acta Ophthalmol Scand 81:617–624
Leung H, Wang JJ, Rochtchina E, Wong TY, Klein R, Mitchell P (2004) Does hormone replacement therapy influence retinal microvascular caliber? Microvasc Res 67:48–54
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Athanassiou, E., Praidou, A. & Tzafetas, I. Ophthalmic effects of menopause and the role of hormone replacement therapy. Eur Clinics Obstet Gynaecol 3, 63–66 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11296-007-0067-8
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11296-007-0067-8