Numerous women experiencing menopause take prescription medications. The objective of the medications is often to stabilize hormonal imbalances. But one drug may be hurting more than helping these women.
Bloomberg reports a new study has come up with an interesting take on Pfizer’s Premarin, which is often used by women experiencing menopause. “Women taking Premarin, also known as conjugated equine estrogens, had double the risk of a blood clot in the veins than women taking estradiol, a synthetic form of estrogen,” according to research published in JAMA.
Researchers utilized a wide range of women to conduct the study. “Researchers in the study included 384 post-menopausal women ages 30 to 79 who were taking hormone treatments and were part of the heart and vascular health study with Group Health Cooperative, a health-care system in Washington state. From January 2003 to December 2009, 68 women developed blood clots, including 39 who used Premarin, 67 had a heart attack, including 38 who used Premarin, and 48 had a stroke, including 25 who used Premarin,” according to Bloomberg.
The research also showed that the risk of getting a heart attack was also elevated for women taking Premarin. The FDA does not endorse the use of hormone therapy. Bloomberg reports, “The Food and Drug Administration says that women shouldn’t use hormone therapy to prevent heart attacks, strokes, breast cancer, and gall bladder disease. Women who have a uterus and take estrogen may have a higher risk of cancer of the uterine lining.”
Women who insist on taking hormone-stabilizing drugs are being urged to at least take them in small doses. They are also being suggested to do a great deal of research and ask their doctors which drugs are the safest and have the least side effects. The purpose here is to avoid serious side effects that have occurred such as blood clots and heart attacks.
