Women experiencing menopause – including premature or surgically induced menopause – have an increased risk of adverse cardiometabolic changes and subsequent cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and coronary artery disease, according to an article published in the journal Nature by physicians from Allegheny Health Network (AHN) and Harvard Medical School.
PITTSBURGH, Oct. 9, 2023 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Women experiencing menopause – including premature or surgically induced menopause – have an increased risk of adverse cardiometabolic changes and subsequent cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and coronary artery disease, according to an article published in the journal Nature by physicians from Allegheny Health Network (AHN) and Harvard Medical School.
"For all people, risk of adverse cardiovascular events increases as we age," said Jaya M. Mehta, MD, an AHN primary care internist and the article's lead author. "But for women, it's not just the normal aging process that contributes to this increased risk – physiological changes driven by menopausal hormonal fluctuations and ovarian aging also add to the risk."
Those changes include increased fatty tissue deposits and vascular anatomy changes, such as increased arterial stiffness, Dr. Mehta said.
Additionally, research has shown women who experience "premature menopause" – symptoms prior to age 40 – or early menopause (from ages 40-45) also have an increased risk of heart failure or atrial fibrillation, compared to those who begin the menopausal transition at a later age.
"Menopause is not just about hot flashes and reproductive system changes," Dr. Mehta said. "We want patients to be mindful of the other health risks associated with the menopausal transition, and to take preventive steps – such as prioritizing improved diet and sleep habits – to lessen those risks."
Nature is a weekly international journal that publishes peer-reviewed research in all fields of science and technology. Nature also publishes review articles, which interpret and contextualize existing research; the AHN-Harvard paper appeared in "Nature Reviews Cardiology," a monthly journal.
Menopause is an under-researched area of medicine, and the Nature review article was published just a few weeks after the journal Cell published its own comprehensive review of the state of menopausal medicine, looking at 70 years of mid-life research and identifying knowledge gaps.
"Despite decades of research pertaining to menopause, more work is needed to document [symptom] prevalence and health impacts outside high-income countries," the review said.
Because of those knowledge and research gaps, general awareness about menopause and its many potential side effects is limited.
"While almost all women will experience menopause, only a minority of them receive effective treatment for their symptoms," said JoAnn E. Manson, MD, of Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Harvard Medical School.
A pioneering women's health advocate and oft-cited public health researcher, Dr. Manson is co-author of the Nature article. "The implications are enormous for women, their health, and their general sense of wellness and productivity – one recent study suggested that menopause symptoms cost American women $1.8 billion in lost working time per year."
As for the cardiovascular risk factors tied to menopause, while changes in men's body composition occur more gradually, for women, "modifications in body composition occur most rapidly during the two-year period before and after the final menstrual period," the Nature review article said.
The changes in body composition, fat metabolism, and estrogen levels during menopause are associated with elevated lipid levels, arterial thickening, and other heart health risk factors.
"Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in women, who tend to develop the disease later in life than men do," Dr. Manson said. "All women should be mindful of their heart health, but women who are experiencing or about to experience menopause should talk with their doctors about
their unique cardiovascular risk factors."
The Nature article (doi:10.1038/s41569-023-00926-7) was published Sept. 26.
About the Allegheny Health Network:
Allegheny Health Network (AHN.org), is an integrated healthcare delivery system serving the greater Western Pennsylvania region. The Network is composed of 14 hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, Health + Wellness Pavilions, multiple employed physician organizations, home and community-based health services, a research institute, and a group purchasing organization. The Network provides patients with access to a complete spectrum of advanced medical services, including nationally recognized programs for primary and emergency care, trauma care, cardiovascular disease, organ transplantation, cancer care, orthopedic surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, women's health, diabetes, autoimmune disease and more. AHN employs approximately 21,000 people, has more than 2,600 physicians on its medical staff and serves as a clinical campus for Drexel University College of Medicine and the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine.
Media Contact
Nikki Buccina, Allegheny Health Network, 412-596-2679, [email protected], www.ahn.org
SOURCE Allegheny Health Network
Share this article