Menopause, mild psychological stress and salivary cortisol: influence of long-term hormone replacement therapy (HRT)

OBJECTIVE: Aim of the present study was to examine the adrenocortical activity in basal condition and following a mild stress exposure in long-term HRT-treated menopausal women. Menopausal women, long term users of HRT (14 subjects) were compared both to menopausal women who had never used HRT (14 subjects) and young pre-menopausal women (14 subjects). STUDY DESIGN: Morning and evening salivary cortisol secretion was measured in samples collected twice a day (08:00 in the morning and 08:00 in the evening). Mild stress response was evoked by administration of the Stroop color-word test (CWT). Salivary cortisol was measured immediately before the start, 15, 30 and 45 min after the completion of the test. RESULTS: Menopause appears not to be associated with an impairment of cortisol circadian fluctuation. Long-term use of HRT in menopause attenuated HPA activity either in basal condition or in response to mild stress exposure. With regard to the CWT performance, all menopausal women took significantly longer than young women to perform the test. However, long-term HRT significantly reduced the number of errors made during the test. CONCLUSIONS: The present study suggested that long-term HRT could help menopausal patients to cope with mild stress and to improve mental performances.