1
|
Meijsen JJ, Shen H, Vemuri M, Rasgon NL, Koenen KC, Duncan LE. Shared genetic influences on depression and menopause symptoms. Psychol Med 2023; 53:2241-2251. [PMID: 34865661 PMCID: PMC9167895 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291721004037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Women experience major depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) approximately twice as often as men. Estrogen is thought to contribute to sex differences in these disorders, and reduced estrogen is also known to be a key driver of menopause symptoms such as hot flashes. Moreover, estrogen is used to treat menopause symptoms. In order to test for potential shared genetic influences between menopause symptoms and psychiatric disorders, we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of estrogen medication use (as a proxy for menopause symptoms) in the UK Biobank. METHODS The analysis included 232 993 women aged 39-71 in the UK Biobank. The outcome variable for genetic analyses was estrogen medication use, excluding women using hormonal contraceptives. Trans-ancestry GWAS meta-analyses were conducted along with genetic correlation analyses on the European ancestry GWAS results. Hormone usage was also tested for association with depression and PTSD. RESULTS GWAS of estrogen medication use (compared to non-use) identified a locus in the TACR3 gene, which was previously linked to hot flashes in menopause [top rs77322567, odds ratio (OR) = 0.78, p = 7.7 × 10-15]. Genetic correlation analyses revealed shared genetic influences on menopause symptoms and depression (rg = 0.231, s.e.= 0.055, p = 2.8 × 10-5). Non-genetic analyses revealed higher psychiatric symptoms scores among women using estrogen medications. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest that menopause symptoms have a complex genetic etiology which is partially shared with genetic influences on depression. Moreover, the TACR3 gene identified here has direct clinical relevance; antagonists for the neurokinin 3 receptor (coded for by TACR3) are effective treatments for hot flashes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joeri J Meijsen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
- Institute of Biological Psychiatry, Mental Health Center Sct. Hans, Mental Health Services Copenhagen, Boserupvej 2, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Hanyang Shen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Mytilee Vemuri
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Natalie L Rasgon
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Karestan C Koenen
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laramie E Duncan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Nishimi K, Thurston RC, Chibnik LB, Roberts AL, Sumner JA, Lawn RB, Tworoger SS, Kim Y, Koenen KC, Kubzansky LD. Posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms and timing of menopause and gynecological surgery in the Nurses' Health Study II. J Psychosom Res 2022; 159:110947. [PMID: 35644086 PMCID: PMC9197996 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychores.2022.110947] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2022] [Revised: 05/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Earlier menopause, either natural or through gynecologic surgeries, has been associated with various negative health sequelae. While posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been linked to dysregulated biological processes, including reproductive system changes that could alter menopausal timing, little work has examined whether trauma and PTSD are associated with greater risk of early cessation of menses. METHODS Data are from 46,639 women in the Nurses' Health Study II, a prospective cohort study of women followed for up to 26 years. Lifetime trauma and PTSD symptoms were assessed with the Brief Trauma Questionnaire and a PTSD symptom screener in 2008. Age at cessation of menses and reason for cessation of menses (i.e., natural menopause, gynecologic surgery including hysterectomy and/or bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy [BSO]) were assessed. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazards ratios (HR) of cessation of menses (separately for naturally or surgically) associated with trauma alone or PTSD symptoms, relative to no trauma, adjusting for covariates. RESULTS Trauma/PTSD status was associated with earlier cessation of menses due to surgery, but not natural menopause. Women with trauma exposure, low, and high PTSD symptoms had higher hazard of cessation of menses due to surgery relative to those with no trauma exposure (HRtrauma = 1.16, 95%CI 1.07-1.26; HRlow PTSD = 1.25, 95%CI 1.15-1.36; HRhigh PTSD = 1.29, 95%CI 1.17-1.42). Trauma exposure and PTSD symptoms were associated with similarly increased risk of hysterectomy and BSO surgeries. CONCLUSIONS Women who experienced trauma and PTSD may be at elevated risk for common gynecological surgeries premenopausally, potentially due to increased clinical indications or gynecological conditions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kristen Nishimi
- Mental Health Service, San Francisco Veterans Affairs Healthcare System, San Francisco, CA, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
| | - Rebecca C Thurston
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Epidemiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Lori B Chibnik
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Andrea L Roberts
- Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jennifer A Sumner
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Rebecca B Lawn
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Shelley S Tworoger
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Cancer Epidemiology, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute, Tampa, FL, USA
| | - Yongjoo Kim
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; College of Korean Medicine, Sangji University, Wonju, Republic of Korea
| | - Karestan C Koenen
- Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Laura D Kubzansky
- Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Sinko L, Hughesdon K, Grotts JH, Giordano N, Choi KR. A Systematic Review of Research on Trauma and Women's Health in the Nurses' Health Study II. Nurs Womens Health 2022; 26:116-127. [PMID: 35240108 DOI: 10.1016/j.nwh.2022.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2021] [Revised: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 12/23/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To synthesize research on interpersonal trauma and women's health from the Nurses' Health Study II (NHS II) and to analyze conceptualization of interpersonal trauma across studies. DATA SOURCES A literature review was conducted in PubMed using a systematic search strategy. STUDY SELECTION Articles were included in the review if they used data from the NHS II and involved investigations of interpersonal trauma. Theoretical articles, methodologic articles, and other literature reviews involving the NHS II were excluded. Initially, the search returned 61 articles. After exclusions, 45 articles met the criteria for inclusion in the review and data extraction. DATA EXTRACTION Information was extracted and consolidated in an evidence table. Data included study time frame, sample, definition of trauma, outcomes studied, and journal of publication. DATA SYNTHESIS Trauma was not operationalized consistently across studies, even though the NHS II assessed trauma experiences in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Most investigations focused on childhood abuse, with investigations of childhood sexual abuse overrepresented in comparison to other abuse experiences. Authors conducting studies of trauma at any time in the life course consistently found a negative association with physical and mental health outcomes, which were increased by the presence of posttraumatic stress symptoms. Results from a small number of studies suggested a negative intergenerational impact of trauma on the children of women in the NHS II. CONCLUSION Interpersonal trauma across the life course was strongly associated with many leading causes of morbidity and mortality among female nurses. Trauma conceptualization and operationalization varied across studies, and future investigations should leverage the full range of trauma measures available in the NHS II data set.
Collapse
|