What are the pros and cons of hormone replacement therapy?
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) clearly helps to reduce the incidence of osteoporosis and fractures in post-menopausal women. Because osteoporosis is a quite common condition, and because fractures (especially of the hip) are a very serious problem (often leading to nursing home placement, and sometimes resulting in death), HRT has been widely recommended. Many studies have also suggested that estrogen replacement can significantly reduce the risk of coronary heart disease (and heart attacks) after menopause. However, not everyone is convinced that the evidence is strong enough to justify putting most post-menopausal women on HRT. There are a variety of other possible benefits to HRT that are still being investigated. The risks associated with estrogen replacement therapy include cancer of the uterus; this can be avoided by taking progesterone as well as estrogen. However, there is some concern that taking progesterone may diminish the protective effects that estrogen has against hea
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