Association of Cumulative Lifetime Exposure to Female Hormones With Cerebral Small Vessel Disease in Postmenopausal Women in the UK Biobank
Samantha Côté, Thomas-Louis Perron, Jean‐Patrice Baillargeon, Christian Bocti, Jean‐François Lepage, Kevin Whittingstall
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Rates of cerebrovascular disease increase after menopause, which is often attributed to the absence of hormones. It remains unknown whether the cumulative exposure to hormones across a female person's premenopausal life extends the window of cerebrovascular protection to the postmenopausal period. To investigate this, we examined the relationship between lifetime hormone exposure (LHE) and cerebral small vessel disease in more than 9,000 postmenopausal women in the UK-Biobank. METHODS: . RESULTS: > 0.05). DISCUSSION: Women with more prolonged exposure to endogenous hormones show relatively smaller burden of cerebral small vessel disease independent of the history of oral contraceptive use or hormone replacement therapy. Our results highlight the critical role endogenous hormones play in female brain health and provide real-world evidence of the protective effects premenopausal endogenous hormone exposure plays on postmenopausal cerebrovascular health.