Lack of influence of menopause on blood pressure and cardiovascular risk profile: a 16-year longitudinal study concerning a cohort of 568 women

Blood pressure and metabolic profile after surgical menopause: comparison with fertile and naturally-menopausal women

“…Some authors have found higher levels of BP, 18,29 serum lipids, 18,21 circulating adrenaline 18 and plasma fibrinogen, 30 as well as endothelial dysfunction, 31 in naturallymenopausal in comparison to fertile women. In other surveys, on the contrary, no unfavourable effect on blood lipids 25,32 or BP 21,32,33 have been observed. Being as, at a population level, the naturally-menopausal women are generally older than the fertile ones, there is a possibility that the presumptive unfavourable effects attributed to menopause are simply due to the more advanced age of menopausal women compared with fertile women; this is certainly the case for Italian women.…”

“…Being as, at a population level, the naturally-menopausal women are generally older than the fertile ones, there is a possibility that the presumptive unfavourable effects attributed to menopause are simply due to the more advanced age of menopausal women compared with fertile women; this is certainly the case for Italian women. 25,33 Based on the results of the present study (in which the women taking replacement therapy were purposely excluded to avoid any exogenous intereference), we can add the information that this is also true for surgical menopause. In fact, the prevalence of hypertension showed no difference in oophorectomised or fertile women, and correction for age and BMI eliminated any apparent worsening effect of oophorectomy on BP, atherogenic lipids, and blood glucose.…”

“…25,32 Two epidemiological population-based experiences have been conducted in Italy on natural menopause: one published a few years ago by our group 25 and one by Portaluppi et al 33 In the former, the univariate risk excess observed in naturally-menopausal women when compared to fertile women was simply due to the higher age of the former, and disappeared after age-correction or age-matching. 25 In the latter, the unfavourable risk profile of naturallymenopausal women was related to age (not to the fertility status or length of menopause), and was no longer detectable after age-correction. 33 The experience of Matthews et al 34 is in keeping with this evidence which showed that after statistical adjustment for age, fertile and menopausal women no longer differed in relation to TC level.…”

“…The few longitudinal studies on natural menopause that are available were unable demonstrate any direct effect of the decreased ovarian function on cardiovascular mortality 23,25 or morbidity, 25 nor on the development of arterial hypertension 25,32 or hypercholesterolemia. 25,32 Two epidemiological population-based experiences have been conducted in Italy on natural menopause: one published a few years ago by our group 25 and one by Portaluppi et al 33 In the former, the univariate risk excess observed in naturally-menopausal women when compared to fertile women was simply due to the higher age of the former, and disappeared after age-correction or age-matching.…”

“…24 Sixteen years later, the whole baseline population was invited to a second screening. 25 In the meantime, some of the women had moved, or their data were incomplete, and very few had been placed on hormonal replacement therapy, thereby leaving 568 subjects to participate in the second branch of the study. The general characteristics of the 367 excluded and the 568 women included did not differ significantly (Table 1).…”