Low-dose estrogen raised BMD in small study; women over age 65.(News)

Older women treated with low-dose estrogen for 3 years had significantly increased bone mineral density and decreased bone turnover relative to untreated women in a small, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

The study is the first to specifically examine the effects and safety or ultra-low-dose hormones on BMD.

Further research is needed to determine whether the therapy has any effect on fracture incidence or adverse outcomes such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, or breast cancer, the investigators said.

In the study, 167 women older than 65 years received either 0.25 mg/day of 17[beta]-estradiol or placebo for 3 years.

Women taking estrogen who had not had a hysterectomy received 100 mg/day of oral micronized progesterone for 2-week periods every 6 months (JAMA 290[8]:1042-48, 2003).

After 3 years, women in the hormone-treated group had significant increases in BMD, compared with women taking placebo--averaging 2% for the femoral neck, 4% for the total femur, and 3% for the lumbar spine after adjusting for age, height, and weight. The improvements in BMD were similar to those seen in studies of other approved osteoporosis drugs, especially raloxifene and risedronate, reported Dr. Karen M. Prestwood of the University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, and her colleagues in the study.

In addition, several markers of bone turnover decreased significantly in women in the hormone group, compared with the placebo group. Adverse effects were similar in the hormone and placebo groups.