Postmenopausal women who take combined oestrogen and progestogen
hormone replacement therapy (HRT) face twice the risk of developing
dementia than women who do not, a new study says (
JAMA 2003;289:2651-62).
The finding deals a fresh blow to the practice of routine hormonal
supplementation in postmenopausal women and contradicts previous
observational and epidemiological studies that indicated that
oestrogen replacement therapy could protect against Alzheimer's
disease and vascular dementias (JAMA 2002;288:
2123-9, 2170-1).
As reported in last week's BMJ (31 May,
p 1161) the drug companyWyeth, which funded the study, has
admitted that it secretlybriefed a number of medical societies in
advance of the study'spublication, knowing it was going to be
potentially damagingfor the company.
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Josefson, D. 
