HRT and the Young at Heart

For the past decade, women and health care providers have faced confusing information about the effects of hormone-replacement therapy, or HRT, on heart disease. Important practical questions have remained unresolved: Who can safely receive hormone-replacement therapy? Who is at increased risk from hormone-replacement therapy? Might any women benefit from hormone-replacement therapy for reasons other than relief from menopausal symptoms?Now, some clarity about hormone-replacement therapy and heart disease is emerging. New research supports the concept that hormone-replacement therapy has different effects on blood vessels in younger menopausal women (50 to 59 years old) than in women long after menopause, underscoring . . .