Timing of Hormone Therapy and Dementia: The Critical Window Theory Re-visited

摘要

ObjectiveWhile previous research has shown that initiation of postmenopausal estrogen hormone therapy (HT) in late-life increases risk of dementia, animal studies and some observational studies have suggested that mid-life use of HT may be beneficial; however this hasn’t been rigorously investigated in large population-based studies. Our objective was to compare HT use in mid-life with that in late-life on risk of dementia among 5504 postmenopausal female members of an integrated health care delivery system.