Fracture Risk Increases After Women Stop Hormone Therapy: Study Finds

To address this gap, researchers analyzed data from six million women across 2,000 general practice surgeries in the UK. They identified women with first fracture records and matched them with similar women without fractures, comparing their histories of menopausal hormone therapy use. The study tracked outcomes for up to 25 years, making it one of the most comprehensive investigations to date.

Lead author Dr Yana Vinogradova said, “For most women, the bone protective effect of menopausal hormone therapy use disappears completely within about one year of treatment being stopped, then their fracture risk rises compared to never users, peaking after about three years, before declining to become again equivalent to never users – about 10 years after discontinuation – and then again continuing to decline relative to never users. So, even after stopping menopausal hormone therapy, women should benefit from notably reduced fracture risk in their later decades.”

“These novel findings may also usefully stimulate further clinical and biological research into these treatments,” adds Dr Vinogradova.

Reference: Discontinuation of menopausal hormone therapy and risk of fracture: nested case–control studies using routinely collected primary care data, Vinogradova, Yana et al. The Lancet Healthy Longevity, Volume 0, Issue 0, 100729