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- Björn, Inger, 1953-
(author)
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Hormone replacement therapy and effects on mood
- 2003
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Background: During the past 5 decades, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has been used, and appreciated for its beneficial effects, by millions of women in their menopause. As treatment for climacteric symptoms, estrogen is outstanding, and effects on hot flushes, vaginal dryness, and insomnia have been widely documented. The increased risks of venous thrombosis and breast cancer, however, restrict the use of estrogen.Estrogen treatment in women with a remaining uterus includes a progestin, added to protect the endometrium from hyperplasia and malignancies. The long-standing clinical impression, that progestin addition negatively influences mood, has been discussed in previous studies. Mood deterioration is, however, not mortal, although mood is important to the wellbeing and daily functioning of women treated with hormones. Studies of the mental side effects of HRT add to our understanding of steroid effects in the brain.Aims and methods: In our studies, we aimed to establish to what extent negative side effects cause women to discontinue HRT, and find out which drug compounds lead to mood deterioration. The questions asked were whether the type and dose of progestin and the estrogen dose during the progestin addition influence the mood and physical symptoms during sequential HRT.Compliance with HRT and reasons for discontinuing the therapy were evaluated in a retrospective longitudinal follow-up study. Treatment effects were studied in three randomized, double-blind, cross-over trials. During continuous estrogen treatment, effects of sequential addition of a progestin were studied by comparing two different progestins, medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) andnorethisterone acetate (NETA), comparing different doses of the same progestin, MPA, and comparing two doses of estrogen during addition of the same dose of MPA. The main outcome measure was the daily rating on mood and physical symptoms kept by the participants throughout the studies. The clinical trials were carried out at three gynecological centers in northern Sweden.Results and conclusions: Besides fear of cancer and a wish to determine whether climacteric symptoms had meanwhile disappeared, negative side effects was the most common reason or discontinuing HRT. Tension in the breasts, weight gain, a depressed mood, abdominal bloating, and irritability were the most important side effects seen both in women who continued HRT and in women who had discontinued the therapy.In our clinical trials, we showed that addition of a progestin to estrogen treatment induces cyclic mood swings characterized by tension, irritability, and depression, as well as increased breast tension, bloatedness, and hot flushes. Women with a history of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) appeared to be more sensitive to the progestin addition and responded with lower mood scores compared with women without previous PMS. In our studies, MPA provoked depressed mood to a lesser extent than did NETA. Surprisingly, the higher dose of MPA (20 mg) enhanced the mood, compared with 10 mg, when added to estrogen treatment. In women continuously treated with 3 mg estradiol, mood and physical symptoms worsened during the progestin addition, as compared with treatment with 2 mg estradiol. The negative side effects seen during sequential HRT have much in common with symptoms seen in the premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), which is a psychoneuroendocrine disorder with psychiatric expression. Explanations for treatment effects on mood are likely to be found in drug interactions with neurotransmitter systems of the brain.
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- Björn, Inger, 1953-, et al.
(author)
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Increase of estrogen dose deteriorates mood during progestin phase in sequential hormonal therapy
- 2003
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In: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. - : The Endocrine Society. - 0021-972X .- 1945-7197. ; 88:5, s. 2026-2030
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Previous studies have indicated that the addition of progestinsduring sequential hormonal replacement therapy (HRT)causes negative mood and physical symptoms. History of premenstrualsyndrome, type of progestin, and dose of progestinhave thus far been shown to influence the progestin-inducedadverse mood symptoms during HRT.The aim of this study was to compare adverse mood effectsof two different doses of estradiol, in combination with a progestin,during postmenopausal HRT. Twenty-eight perimenopausalwomen were included in this randomized, doubleblind,crossover study comparing 2- or 3-mg continuousestradiol, with an addition of 10 mg medroxyprogesteroneacetate on d 17–28 during each treatment cycle. The mainoutcome measures were mood and physical symptoms kept ona daily rating scale. Together with the progestin, the higherdose of estrogen caused significantly more negative moodsymptoms than the lower dose. Tension, irritability, and depressedmood were all significantly augmented during theprogestin phase of cycles with 3mg estradiol (P<0.001). Physicalsymptoms also increased during the progestin phase of3-mg estradiol cycles (P<0.001), whereas positive mood symptomswere less affected. The only positive mood that changedwith estrogen dose was friendliness, which decreased duringthe progestin phase of high estradiol cycles compared withcycles with lower estradiol (P < 0.05).Our conclusion is that an increase of the estrogen doseaccentuates negativemoodand physical symptoms during theprogestin phase of sequential hormonal therapy.
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- Björn, Inger, 1953-, et al.
(author)
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The impact of different doses of medroxyprogesterone acetate on mood symptoms in sequential hormonal therapy
- 2002
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In: Gynecological Endocrinology. - : Informa Healthcare. - 0951-3590 .- 1473-0766. ; 16, s. 1-8
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The aim of this study was to compare adverse mood effects of two different doses of medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) during postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in women with and without a history of premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The study was designed as a randomized double-blind cross-over study and included 36 postmenopausal women at three health care areas in northern Sweden. The women received 2 mg estradiol continuously during five 28-day cycles and 10 mg or 20 mg MPA sequentially for 12 days during each cycle. The main outcome measures were mood and physical symptoms noted on a daily rating scale. We found that physical symptoms did not differ between 10 and 20 mg MPA. Both women with a history of PMS and women without responded with more negative mood symptoms with the lower dose of MPA. In women with previous PMS the higher dose of MPA enhanced positive mood symptoms. With respect to mood and physical symptoms, the aim to lower MPA doses in HRT is unwarranted.
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- Bäckström, Torbjörn, et al.
(author)
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The role of hormones and hormonal treatments in premenstrual syndrome
- 2003
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In: CNS Drugs. - 1172-7047 .- 1179-1934. ; 17:5, s. 325-342
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a menstrual cycle-linked condition with both mental and physical symptoms. Most women of fertile age experience cyclical changes but consider them normal and not requiring treatment. Up to 30% of women feel a need for treatment. The aetiology is still unclear, but sex steroids produced by the corpus luteum of the ovary are thought to be symptom provoking, as the cyclicity disappears in anovulatory cycles when a corpus luteum is not formed. Progestogens and progesterone together with estrogen are able to induce similar symptoms as seen in PMS. Symptom severity is sensitive to the dosage of estrogen. The response systems within the brain known to be involved in PMS symptoms are the serotonin and GABA systems. Progesterone metabolites, especially allopregnanolone, are neuroactive, acting via the GABA system in the brain. Allopregnanolone has similar effects as benzodiazepines, barbiturates and alcohol; all these substances are known to induce adverse mood effects at low dosages in humans and animals. SSRIs and substances inhibiting ovulation, such as gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists, have proven to be effective treatments. To avoid adverse effects when high dosages of GnRH agonists are used, add-back hormone replacement therapy is recommended. Spironolactone also has a beneficial effect, although not as much as SSRIs and GnRH agonists.
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- Bannbers, Elin, 1984-, et al.
(author)
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Prefrontal activity during response inhibition decreases over time in the postpartum period
- 2013
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In: Behavioural Brain Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0166-4328 .- 1872-7549. ; 241, s. 132-138
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The postpartum period is characterized by complex hormonal changes, but human imaging studies in the postpartum period have thus far predominantly focused on the neural correlates of maternal behavior or postpartum depression, whereas longitudinal studies on neural correlates of cognitive function across the postpartum period in healthy women are lacking. The aim of this study was to longitudinally examine response inhibition, as a measure of executive function, during the postpartum period and its neural correlates in healthy postpartum women and non-postpartum controls. Thirteen healthy postpartum women underwent event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging while performing a Go/NoGo task. The first assessment was made within 48 h of delivery, and the second at 4-7 weeks postpartum. In addition, 13 healthy women examined twice during the menstrual cycle were included as non-postpartum controls. In postpartum women region of interest analyses revealed task-related decreased activations in the right inferior frontal gyrus, right anterior cingulate, and bilateral precentral gyri at the late postpartum assessment. Generally, postpartum women displayed lower activity during response inhibition in the bilateral inferior frontal gyri and precentral gyri compared to non-postpartum controls. No differences in performance on the Go/NoGo task were found between time-points or between groups. In conclusion, this study has discovered that brain activity in prefrontal areas during a response inhibition task decreases throughout the course of the first postpartum weeks and is lower than in non-postpartum controls. Further studies on the normal adaptive brain activity changes that occur during the postpartum period are warranted. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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