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Effect of postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy on lipoprotein and homocysteine levels in Chinese women

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Abstract

Epidemiological studies have revealed that postmenopausal estrogen replacement therapy results in a marked reduction in the risk for cardiovascular diseases. In the present study, we evaluated plasma lipoprotein profile as well as homocysteine levels in 145 post‐menopausal and premenopausal Chinese women living in Hong Kong. We also investigated the effect of hormone‐replacement therapy (HRT) with estrogen or estrogen combined with progestin on plasma lipoprotein profile and homocysteine concentrations in those individuals. Postmenopausal women displayed significantly higher plasma levels of total cholesterol, LDL‐cholesterol and apoB as well as higher plasma homocysteine levels than that of premenopausal women. HRT with either estrogen (17β-estradiol or conjugated equine estrogen) alone or estrogen combined with progestin for 3.5–4.5 years significantly improved the lipoprotein profile in postmenopausal women by decreasing the levels of total cholesterol (12–20% reduction), LDL-cholesterol (26–29% reduction) and apoB (21–25% reduction). In women treated with 17β‐estradiol or conjugated equine estrogens their plasma levels of apoAI were significantly elevated (18% elevation) as compared to non-users. HRT also reduced plasma concentrations of homocysteine (13–15% reduction). In conclusion, we found that long-term HRT was associated with improvement in plasma lipoprotein profile and a reduction in homocysteine concentration in postmenopausal women. These results support the notion that the improvement of lipoprotein profile and a reduction in homocysteine concentration may contribute to the beneficial effect of HRT on cardiovascular risk.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Cardiovascular Science and Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Ricky Y.K. Man, Lily K.F. Ting, Yaw L. Siow & Yee H. Chung

  2. The Family Planning Association of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

    Susan Fan & Maggie M.H. Lau

  3. Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, 1/F, Li Shu Fan Building, 5 Sassoon Road, Hong Kong

    O. Karmin

Authors
  1. Ricky Y.K. Man
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  2. Lily K.F. Ting
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  3. Susan Fan
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  4. Maggie M.H. Lau
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  5. Yaw L. Siow
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  6. Yee H. Chung
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  7. O. Karmin
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Correspondence to O. Karmin.

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Man, R.Y., Ting, L.K., Fan, S. et al. Effect of postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy on lipoprotein and homocysteine levels in Chinese women. Mol Cell Biochem 225, 129–134 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1017405507246

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