Many researchers have looked at different aspects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) including its benefits and harms.  A lot of information is available that may be somewhat overwhelming and even confusing.  A group of  researchers reviewed the research to provide  a summary of the work that has been done on the subject.

Black women are at a higher risk for death from cardiovascular disease than white women, but the reasons for this disparity remain a mystery. One possible source of enlightenment in this area was the different medical care and clinical outcomes seen among the two groups of women.

The Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) was a clinical trial with more than 10,000 women that had to be halted before its scheduled end because the interim health effects seen on women were particularly harmful.  Women who participated and received combined estrogen plus progestin experienced increases overall risks of breast cancer, stroke, coronary heart disease, venous thrombeoembolism (VTE).  This study was glaring warning sign that the use of combination estrogen and progestin was harmful to women and that indeed, more research on menopause in women had to be conducted.
 

The Heart and Estrogen / Progestin Replacement Study (known as “HERS”) was a randomized clinical trial to determine the long-term effect of estrogen combined with progestin on older post-menopausal women with coronary heart disease. HERS was conducted for 4.1 years and was followed with a subsequent study known as HERS II for an additional 2.7 years. In total, the studies were conducted from 1993 to 2000 and involved 20 outpatient and community-based clinical centers across the United States. HERS had more than 2,700 women (average age = 67) participate.

Several studies now show that applying chest compressions alone to a heart attack victim, rather than complete mouth-to-mouth resuscitation CPR may be good enough to save lives.

One study in Sweden looked at the survival rates of cardiac arrest victims who had been given standard CPR with rescue breaths or chest compressions alone. Looking at the outcomes of 11,275 patients, the researchers found no difference in survival between those who received CPR with mouth-to-mouth breathing and those who received CPR with only chest compressions.

People with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have a reduced life expectancy and a higher risk for cardiovascular disease than the general population. A recent study at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN set out to determine how to predict which RA patients are at a higher risk than others in order to provide better preventative treatment.

A new study from England suggests the size of your belly in relation to your hips may directly influence your risk for developing heart problems. People with a large waistline and relatively smaller hips (a “pot belly” shape) appear to be more likely to develop coronary disease than those who carry weight at both waist and hips or primarily in the hips.

Heart attacks in women may not always cause the classic symptoms of chest pain and sweating usually associated with heart attacks in men. In fact, studies have shown that women can have undiagnosed symptoms which go unheeded for weeks, months or years and even physicians fail to recognize the warning signs unique to some women.

Generally, men are usually more than two times more likely to die from heart disease than women. However, women who have diabetes develop an equally high risk for a fatal heart problem as men, according to a recent study published in the European Heart Journal.

A recent study published by a group of scientists at the University of Auckland in New Zealand suggests that taking calcium supplements may be harmful to heart health in older, post-menopausal women. The authors claim they found “upwards trends” in the relative risk for heart attack, stoke or sudden death in women (average age of 74 years) taking calcium pills for five years compare with similar-aged women who did not use the supplements over the same period of time.