[Menopause, menopause hormone therapy and osteoporosis. Postmenopausal women management: CNGOF and GEMVi clinical practice guidelines]

Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a frequent clinical condition, which affects nearly 1 in 3 women. Estrogen deficiency leads to rapid bone loss, which is maximal within the first years after the menopause transition and can be prevented by menopause hormone therapy (MHT). Assessment of the individual risk of osteoporosis is primarily based on the measurement of bone mineral density (BMD) at the spine and femur by DXA. Clinical risk factors (CRFs) for fractures taken either alone or in combination in the FRAX score were shown not to reliably predict fractures and/or osteoporosis (as defined by a T-score<-2.5) in early postmenopausal women. If DXA measurement is indicated in all women with CRFs for fractures, it can be proposed on a case-by-case basis, when knowledge of BMD is likely to condition the management of women at the beginning of menopause, particularly the benefit-risk balance of MHT. MHT prevents both bone loss and degradation of the bone microarchitecture in early menopause. It significantly reduces the risk of fracture at all bone sites by 20 to 40% regardless of basal level of risk with an estrogen-dependent dose-effect. Given the inter-individual variability in bone response, individual monitoring of the bone effect of MHT is warranted when prescribed for the prevention of osteoporosis. This monitoring is based on repeated measurement of lumbar and femoral BMD (on the same DXA measurement system) after 2years of MHT, the response criterion being no significant bone loss. Discontinuation of treatment is associated with a resumption of transient bone loss although there is a large variability in the rate of bone loss among women. Basically, there is a return to the level of fracture risk comparable to that of in untreated woman of the same age within 2 to 5years. Therefore, when MHT is prescribed for the prevention of osteoporosis in women with an increased risk at the beginning of menopause, measurement of BMD is recommended when MHT is stopped in order to consider further management of the risk of fracture whenever necessary (with possibly another anti-osteoporotic treatment).

[Menopause hormone treatment in practice. Postmenopausal women management: CNGOF and GEMVi clinical practice guidelines]

Menopause Hormonal Treatment (MHT) was initially developed to correct the climacteric symptoms induced by postmenopausal estrogen deficiency. In non-hysterectomized women, MHT combines estrogens and a progestogen, the latter opposing the negative impact of estrogen on endometrial proliferation. In France, and contrary to the USA and Northern European countries, MHT mainly combines 17β-estradiol, which is the physiological estrogen produced by the ovary, and progesterone or its derivative, dihydrogesterone. France has been a pioneer in the development of cutaneous administration routes (gel or transdermal patch) for estradiol, allowing better metabolic tolerance and a reduction of the risk of venous thromboembolism compared to the oral route. The choice of the doses as well as the treatment regimen is underpinned by tolerance as well as acceptance and compliance. The risk of breast cancer, which is one of the main risks of MHT, is higher with estro-progestogen combinations than with estrogens alone ; the preferential use of progesterone or dihydrogesterone being likely to limit the excess risk of breast cancer associated with MHT at least for duration of treatment of less than 5 to 7 years. The question of the optimal duration of MHT remains an issue and must take into account the initial indication of treatment as well as the benefit-risk balance, which is specific to each woman. Continuation of MHT is conditioned by the benefit-risk balance, which must be evaluated regularly, but also by the evolution of symptoms when MHT is stopped as well as menopause-related health risks or induced by MHT. After stopping MHT, it is necessary to maintain a medical follow-up to be adapted to the clinical situation of each woman and in particular, her cardiovascular and gynecological risk factors.

Is there a role for menopausal hormone therapy in the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis?

We provide an evidence base and guidance for the use of menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) for the maintenance of skeletal health and prevention of future fractures in recently menopausal women. Despite controversy over associated side effects, which has limited its use in recent decades, the potential role for MHT soon after menopause in the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis is increasingly recognized. We present a narrative review of the benefits versus risks of using MHT in the management of postmenopausal osteoporosis. Current literature suggests robust anti-fracture efficacy of MHT in patients unselected for low BMD, regardless of concomitant use with progestogens, but with limited evidence of persisting skeletal benefits following cessation of therapy. Side effects include cardiovascular events, thromboembolic disease, stroke and breast cancer, but the benefit-risk profile differs according to the use of opposed versus unopposed oestrogens, type of oestrogen/progestogen, dose and route of delivery and, for cardiovascular events, timing of MHT use. Overall, the benefit-risk profile supports MHT treatment in women who have recently (< 10 years) become menopausal, who have menopausal symptoms and who are less than 60 years old, with a low baseline risk for adverse events. MHT should be considered as an option for the maintenance of skeletal health in women, specifically as an additional benefit in the context of treatment of menopausal symptoms, when commenced at the menopause, or shortly thereafter, in the context of a personalized benefit-risk evaluation.

Assessment and hormonal management of osteoporosis

Postmenopausal osteoporosis is a frequent health issue in women. Because osteoporosis-related fractures cause a significant increase in mortality and morbidity, it is clinically important to identify as soon as possible women at increased risk for future fracture so that preventive measures can be instituted. At the beginning of menopause, evaluation of the subsequent risk of fracture is not so easy. Most screening tools fail to accurately identify those women who will fracture within the next 10 years. A history of a prior fracture and low bone mineral density are the only major consistently found predictors for the risk of fracture. On the other hand, it is no longer a question whether menopause hormone therapy is efficient not only to prevent postmenopausal bone loss but also the incidence of fragility fracture. Over the last years, utility of menopause hormone therapy for the prevention of osteoporosis has been questioned due to safety concerns. In light of the most recent reports on a more favorable benefit/risk balance than was initially claimed in early postmenopausal women, this needs to be reconsidered. Prevention of bone loss in those women with a moderate or slightly high risk of fracture is likely a strategy to reduce fracture risk in older women. Menopause hormone therapy must be considered as a true primary preventive therapy more than an anti-fracture therapy at an age when the risk of fracture is likely much lower than later in life. Only thereafter should other anti-osteoporotic medications be discussed in women still at high risk for fracture.