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New hormone data can predict menopause within a year
October 28, 2008ANN ARBOR, Mich.---For many women, including the growing number who choose later-in-life pregnancy, predicting their biological clock's relation to the timing of their menopause and infertility is critically important.
Now, investigators from the University of Michigan have provided new information about hormonal biomarkers that can address the beginning of the menopause transition.
"In the end, this information can change the way we do business," said MaryFran Sowers, professor in the U-M School of Public Health Department of Epidemiology. "The information provides a roadmap as to how fast women are progressing through the different elements of their reproductive life."
A research team headed by Sowers examined the naturally occurring changes in three different biomarkers over the reproductive life of more than 600 women: follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) and inhibin B.
Researchers found that the biomarker AMH declined to a very low or non-measurable level five years prior to the final menstrual period. This decline pinpoints a critical juncture in which a woman probably has so few follicles (eggs) that her fertility becomes increasingly questionable, Sowers said. They found that the changes in AMH and inhibin B concentrations were predictive of the time to menopause.
The research team also measured and reported the rates of change in FSH and used the information to identify different reproductive stages. Based on a woman's age and the level of FSH in the blood, researchers were able to describe four different stages that occur for women from their late reproductive period to the time of their final menstrual period.
While clinicians have the ability to measure these hormones now, they haven't had the kind of information about AMH, inhibin B or FSH collected on a large group of women over time to know how to relate levels or changes in the levels to fertility or to a menopause endpoint.
"People really want information about how long do I have and when will I have my final menstrual period," Sowers said. "Now we are beginning to say, 'If you have a specific FSH level combined with your age, this is the likelihood that you are in this reproductive stage.'
"We finally have numbers from enough women evaluated over a long time period to describe the reproductive aging process. It begins to give women and clinicians an expanded way to look at menses and endocrine events in terms of reproductive progression."
Sowers said additional study results have been submitted to describe the amount of bone loss that occurs at the different FSH stages.Thus, if women and clinicians know where women are in the various reproduc
University of Michigan
A research team headed by Sowers examined the naturally occurring changes in three different biomarkers over the reproductive life of more than 600 women: follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) and inhibin B.
Researchers found that the biomarker AMH declined to a very low or non-measurable level five years prior to the final menstrual period. This decline pinpoints a critical juncture in which a woman probably has so few follicles (eggs) that her fertility becomes increasingly questionable, Sowers said. They found that the changes in AMH and inhibin B concentrations were predictive of the time to menopause.
The research team also measured and reported the rates of change in FSH and used the information to identify different reproductive stages. Based on a woman's age and the level of FSH in the blood, researchers were able to describe four different stages that occur for women from their late reproductive period to the time of their final menstrual period.
While clinicians have the ability to measure these hormones now, they haven't had the kind of information about AMH, inhibin B or FSH collected on a large group of women over time to know how to relate levels or changes in the levels to fertility or to a menopause endpoint.
"People really want information about how long do I have and when will I have my final menstrual period," Sowers said. "Now we are beginning to say, 'If you have a specific FSH level combined with your age, this is the likelihood that you are in this reproductive stage.'
"We finally have numbers from enough women evaluated over a long time period to describe the reproductive aging process. It begins to give women and clinicians an expanded way to look at menses and endocrine events in terms of reproductive progression."
Sowers said additional study results have been submitted to describe the amount of bone loss that occurs at the different FSH stages.Thus, if women and clinicians know where women are in the various reproduc
University of Michigan
Menopause Current Events and Menopause News RSSMenopause-cardiology consensus statement on cardiovascular disease and on HRT
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Flaxseed oil and osteoporosis
Animal studies suggest that adding flaxseed oil to the diet could reduce the risk of osteoporosis in post-menopausal women and women with diabetes, according to a report to be published in the International Journal of Food Safety, Nutrition and Public Health.
Fertility procedures need not delay breast cancer treatment for younger women
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Estrogen therapy likely must be given soon after menopause to provide stroke protection
For estrogen replacement to provide stroke protection, it likely must be given soon after levels drop because of menopause or surgical removal of the ovaries, scientists report in the Journal of Neuroscience.
Are humans still evolving? Absolutely, says a new analysis of a long-term survey of human health
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Hormone mix could cut breast cancer risk and treat symptoms of menopause
The right combination of estrogen and a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM), which blocks the effects of estrogen in breast tissue, could relieve menopause symptoms and cut breast cancer risk.
Novel, soy-based SE5-OH containing Natural S-equol supplement reduced hot flash frequency by nearly 59 percent
SE5-OH containing Natural S-equol, a novel soy germ-based ingredient in a supplement, improved menopausal symptoms, including significantly reducing hot flash frequency by nearly 59 percent, according to a peer-reviewed study in Japanese women.
Pelvic floor muscle exercises can help manage urinary incontinence in older women
Researchers at Rush University Medical Center have found that a program of pelvic floor muscle exercises, combined with pelvic health education, can be an effective way to manage urinary incontinence in elderly women.
Researchers believe hormone therapy should not be stopped prior to mammograms
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) are recommending that menopausal women on hormone therapy (HT) continue their treatment prior to having their annual mammogram screenings.
Penn studies point to strategies for reducing painful breast cancer drug side effects
Aromatase inhibitors, the same drugs that have buoyed long-term survival rates among breast cancer patients, also carry side effects including joint pain so severe that many patients discontinue these lifesaving medicines.
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