A new study by Swedish
researchers has found that women who experience an early menopause are
at increased
risk for heart failure. In addition, smoking increases that risk. The study
was published online on May 12 in the journal Menopause.
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| Early-Menopause-Increases-Heart-Failure-Risk-Especially-For-Smokers |
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The investigators conducted a study to determine whether
younger age at natural menopause carries a risk of heart failure. They also
evaluated whether smoking modified that risk. They used data from the Swedish
Mammography Cohort, which comprised 22,256 postmenopausal women. Age of natural
menopause was noted and the women were followed from 1997 through 2011. The
women’s first episode of heart failure was determined through the Swedish
National Patient Register and the Cause of Death Register. The data was
subjected to statistical analysis to determine the risk of heart failure.
The investigators found that during an average follow-up of
13 years, 2,532 first events of heart failure hospitalizations and deaths
occurred. The average age at menopause was 51 years. Early natural menopause
(40-45 years), compared to menopause at ages 50 to 54 years, was significantly
associated with heart failure (1.40-fold increased risk). When the data was
analyzed in regard to smoking status, a similar increased risk was found among
women who did not experience an early menopause and smoked. In addition, women
who smoked were more likely to experience an early menopause. The investigators
found a significant interaction between age at natural menopause and smoking.
The authors concluded that their study found that women who
experience an early natural menopause are at increased risk for developing
heart failure. In addition, smoking can modify the association by increasing
the risk even among women who enter menopause from ages 46 to 49 years.
This study is in agreement with a study published September
18, 2011 in the journal Menopause. Study author Dr. Volodymyr Dvornyk, from the
University of Hong Kong, noted that women “should be aware of this effect and
possible health consequences” of smoking, in addition to its other known risks.
He and his research team conducted a meta-analysis, which pooled data from six
studies of approximately 6,000 women in the U.S., Poland, Turkey, and Iran. It
revealed that women who smoke may enter menopause about a year earlier than
nonsmokers. On average, non-smokers reached the menopause between age 46 and
51, depending on the study population. In all but two of the studies, smokers
were younger: between age 43 and 50. The researchers also reviewed five other
studies that used a cut-off age of 50 or 51 to stratify women into “early” and
“late” menopause groups. Among the more than 43,000 women in that analysis,
smokers were 43% more likely than nonsmokers to have early menopause. They
wrote, “Our results give further evidence that smoking is significantly
associated with earlier [age at menopause] and provide yet another
justification for women to avoid this habit.”
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| Early Menopause Could Raise Risk of Heart Disease |
One in five women in Los Angeles smoke, according to the Los
Angeles County Department of Public Health. These women are at significantly
increased for cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD), lung cancer,
and other cancers.
