Women taking HT had a significantly decreased incidence of fracture with long-term use .
Research ers found no strong evidence that HT has a clinical ly meaningful impact on the incidence of colorectal cancer .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS : Women with intolerable menopausal symptoms may wish to weigh the benefits of symptom relief against the small absolute risk of harm arising from short-term use of low-dose HT , provided they do not have specific contraindications .
HT may be unsuitable for some women , including those at increased risk of cardiovascular disease , increased risk of thromboembolic disease ( such as those with obesity or a history of venous thrombosis ) or increased risk of some types of cancer ( such as breast cancer , in women with a uterus ) .
The risk of endometrial cancer among women with a uterus taking oestrogen-only HT is well documented .
HT is not indicated for primary or secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease or dementia , nor for prevention of deterioration of cognitive function in postmenopausal women .
Although HT is considered effective for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis , it is generally recommended as an option only for women at significant risk for whom non-oestrogen therapies are unsuitable .
BACKGROUND : Hormone therapy ( HT ) is widely provided for control of menopausal symptoms and has been used for the management and prevention of cardiovascular disease , osteoporosis and  dementia in older women .
This is an up date d version of a Cochrane review first published in 2005 .
OBJECTIVES : To assess effects of long-term HT ( at least 1 year 's duration ) on mortality , cardiovascular outcomes , cancer , gallbladder disease , fracture and cognition in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women during and after cessation of treatment .
Conjugated equine estrogens and global cognitive function in postmenopausal women: Women's Health Initiative Memory Study.
CONTEXT The Women 's Health Initiative Memory Study ( WHIMS ) previously reported that estrogen plus progestin therapy does not protect cognition among women aged 65 years or older . The effect of estrogen-alone therapy , also evaluated in WHIMS , on cognition has not been established for this population . OBJECTIVES To determine whether conjugated equine estrogen ( CEE ) alters global cognitive function in older women and to compare its effect with CEE plus medroxyprogesterone acetate ( CEE plus MPA ) . DESIGN , SETTING , AND PARTICIPANTS A r and omized , double-blind , placebo-controlled ancillary study of the Women 's Health Initiative ( WHI ) , WHIMS evaluated the effect of CEE on incidence of probable dementia among community-dwelling women aged 65 to 79 years with prior hysterectomy from 39 US academic centers that started in June 1995 . Of 3200 eligible women free of probable dementia enrolled in the WHI , 2947 ( 92.1 % ) were enrolled in WHIMS . Analyses were conducted on the 2808 women ( 95.3 % ) with a baseline and at least 1 follow-up measure of global cognitive function before the trial 's termination on February 29 , 2004 . INTERVENTIONS Participants received 1 daily tablet containing either 0.625 mg of CEE ( n = 1387 ) or matching placebo ( n = 1421 ) . MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Global cognitive function measured annually with the Modified Mini-Mental State Examination ( 3MSE ) . RESULTS During a mean follow-up of 5.4 years , mean ( SE ) 3MSE scores were 0.26 ( 0.13 ) units lower than among women assigned to CEE compared with placebo ( P = .04 ) . For pooled hormone therapy ( CEE combined with CEE plus MPA ) , the mean ( SE ) decrease was 0.21 ( 0.08 ; P = .006 ) . Removing women with dementia , mild cognitive impairment , or stroke from the analyses lessened these differences . The adverse effect of hormone therapy was more pronounced among women with lower cognitive function at baseline ( all P<.01 ) . For women assigned to CEE compared with placebo , the relative risk of having a 10-unit decrease in 3MSE scores ( > 2 SDs ) was estimated to be 1.47 ( 95 % confidence interval , 1.04 - 2.07 ) . CONCLUSION For women aged 65 years or older , hormone therapy had an adverse effect on cognition , which was greater among women with lower cognitive function at initiation of treatment
Women taking HT had a significantly decreased incidence of fracture with long-term use .
Research ers found no strong evidence that HT has a clinical ly meaningful impact on the incidence of colorectal cancer .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS : Women with intolerable menopausal symptoms may wish to weigh the benefits of symptom relief against the small absolute risk of harm arising from short-term use of low-dose HT , provided they do not have specific contraindications .
HT may be unsuitable for some women , including those at increased risk of cardiovascular disease , increased risk of thromboembolic disease ( such as those with obesity or a history of venous thrombosis ) or increased risk of some types of cancer ( such as breast cancer , in women with a uterus ) .
The risk of endometrial cancer among women with a uterus taking oestrogen-only HT is well documented .
HT is not indicated for primary or secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease or dementia , nor for prevention of deterioration of cognitive function in postmenopausal women .
Although HT is considered effective for the prevention of postmenopausal osteoporosis , it is generally recommended as an option only for women at significant risk for whom non-oestrogen therapies are unsuitable .
BACKGROUND : Hormone therapy ( HT ) is widely provided for control of menopausal symptoms and has been used for the management and prevention of cardiovascular disease , osteoporosis and  dementia in older women .
This is an up date d version of a Cochrane review first published in 2005 .
OBJECTIVES : To assess effects of long-term HT ( at least 1 year 's duration ) on mortality , cardiovascular outcomes , cancer , gallbladder disease , fracture and cognition in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women during and after cessation of treatment .