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. 2022 Apr;18(4):625-634.
doi: 10.1002/alz.12417. Epub 2021 Jul 28.

Vaginal estrogen and association with dementia: A nationwide population-based study

Nelsan Pourhadi  1 , Lina S Mørch  2 , Ellen A Holm  3   4 , Christian T Torp-Pedersen  5   6 , Amani Meaidi  7   8
Affiliations

Vaginal estrogen and association with dementia: A nationwide population-based study

Nelsan Pourhadi et al. Alzheimers Dement. 2022 Apr.

Abstract

Introduction: Use of systemic hormone therapy has been positively associated with development of dementia. Little is known about the dose-dependent effect of vaginal estradiol on dementia risk.

Methods: We assessed associations between cumulative dose of vaginal estradiol tablets and dementia in a case-control study nested in a nationwide Danish cohort of women aged 50 to 60 years at study initiation, who did not use systemic hormone therapy. Each case was age-matched to 10 female controls.

Results: A total of 4574 dementia cases were matched to 45,740 controls. Cumulative use of vaginal estradiol tablets was not associated with all-cause dementia; adjusted hazard ratio 1.02 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.89-1.18) for low dose (< 750 mcg), 1.07 (0.94-1.21) for medium dose (750-2000 mcg), and 0.93 (0.84-1.03) for high dose (> 2000 mcg). Similarly, Alzheimer's disease (AD) only was not associated with vaginal estradiol.

Discussion: Exposure to vaginal estradiol tablets was not associated with all-cause dementia or AD only.

Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; dementia; hormone therapy; nationwide study; pharmacoepidemiology; register study; risk factor; vaginal estrogen.

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References

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