Climacteric symptoms after oral and percutaneous hormone replacement therapy

Abstract

One hundred and ten (110) healthy early post-menopausal women with mild subjective vasomotor symptoms (mean Kupperman index score 11) participated in a long-term, double-blind, placebo-controlled therapeutic trial. The effects of 2 hormone regimens were evaluated. Group I received percutaneous oestrogen therapy for 2 yr, opposed by oral micronized progesterone (200 mg) during the second year, while Group II received oral 17β-oestradiol valerate together with cyproterone acetate (CPA). The serum oestrogen concentrations differed markedly in the 2 treatment groups. In Group I the serum/oestrone/oestradiol ratio was 1 (comparable to the pre-menopausal value), but in group II the ratio was > 5. Despite the difference in the serum oestradiol and oestrone concentrations, the mean symptom scores were rapidly and similarly reduced in both treatment groups ( P < 0.001). They remained low throughout the study and were not significantly different from pre-menopausal values.