Bone density gains from HRT linger for up to 15 years: higher forearm and femoral spine BMD readings seen after 2-3 years of HRT use. (HRT Hailed at Menopause Meeting).

BERLIN -- Women who took hormone replacement therapy for 2-3 years as part of Danish clinical trials had denser bones than untreated subjects 5-15 years later, researchers reported at the 10th World Congress on the Menopause.

"What you have gained, you have gained forever. The impact of that is enormous," said Dr. Claus Christiansen, professor at the Center for Clinical and Basic Research in Ballerup, Denmark.

A total of 263 postmenopausal women included in the PERF study had been enrolled in one of four randomized, placebo-controlled trials of estrogen in combination with progestin that ran from 1983 to 1996, said Dr. Yu Zhao Bagger, senior research physician at the center.

When the studies were concluded, women treated with HRT had 5.4% higher bone mineral density (BMD) at the forearm and 7.2% higher BMD at the femoral neck than women taking placebo. When their BMD was reassessed 5, 11, or 15 years later, women who had taken active HRT still had BMD that was 4.3% greater at the forearm and 6.7% greater at the spine than women who had been assigned to placebo.

Dr. Bagger, who has submitted the study for publication in a major peer-reviewed journal, declined to comment on his data concerning fracture rates in the women.

The results of the PERF study drew considerable attention at the meeting, which was sponsored by the International Menopause Society The meeting was marked by a far rosier endorsement of HRT than has characterized recent U.S. meetings.

From the first plenary session onward, HRT was generally hailed as good medicine for healthy women in early menopause, with randomized, placebo-controlled studies from around the world documenting its positive impact on bone, vasomotor symptoms, sleep quality abdominal fat, and lipids (other than triglycerides).