The Effects of Estrogen on Brain Function

Contents

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List of Contributors

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pp. vii-viii

Introduction

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pp. 1-8

The use of hormone therapy (HT) has come under considerable scrutiny in recent years, and the implications of past and current HT research for women’s health are manifold. Currently, a woman can expect to live nearly one-third of her life in postmenopause, as the average life expectancy for women in the United States has increased to 82 years, while the average age of ...

1 Preclinical Data Relating to Estrogen’s Effects on Cognitive Performance

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pp. 9-45

The use of gonadal hormone therapy (HT) in peri- and postmenopausal women has become a major public health issue. Within the last hundred years, the average life expectancy of women in the United States has risen beyond 82 years, whereas the average age at which women reach menopause has remained relatively constant at 51 years. In addition to more years of life ...

2 The Short-Lived Effects of Hormone Therapy on Cognitive Function

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pp. 46-78

Dementia is characterized by severe memory and other cognitive deficits that interfere with daily life. Alzheimer disease (AD), the most prevalent type of dementia, is characterized by a slow and progressive decline (McKhann et al., 1984). Abundant evidence from in vitro and in vivo animal studies suggests that estrogens could act favorably on almost all mechanisms known to be ...

3 Clinical Data from Structural and Functional Brain Imaging on Estrogen’s Effects in the Central Nervous System

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pp. 79-94

Until recently, little was known about the gender-associated effects of gonadal steroids on neuronal function and neurochemistry. Information about the effects of estrogen on the human brain has recently been provided by studies employing positron emission tomography (PET), functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and ...

4 Clinical Data on Estrogen’s Effects on Mood

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pp. 95-115

One of the most consistent and intriguing findings in affective disorders research is the increased prevalence of major depression in women. Women are twice as likely as men to have unipolar major depression. Since this increased rate of depression is cross-cultural and appears to begin at puberty and decline after menopause, researchers have questioned the role of gonadal ...

5 Preclinical Efforts to Develop Effective NeuroSERMs for the Brain

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pp. 116-143

Neurodegenerative diseases are among the most devastating and costly age-associated maladies. Of the neurodegenerative diseases, Alzheimer disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia, loss of independent living, and institutionalization (Brookmeyer et al., 1998; Fillit, 2000, 2002a; Whitehouse, 1997). AD can have a prolonged ...

6 Basic and Clinical Data on the Effects of SERMs on Cognition

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pp. 144-164

At least 10 percent of persons over 65 years old and 50 percent of those over 85 have some form of cognitive impairment, ranging from mild deficits to dementia (Evans, 1990). Alzheimer disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia, is currently estimated to affect 4 million people in the United States and to cost $70 billion annually, but it is projected to affect vastly ...

Conclusion

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pp. 165-167

The long-term effects of available hormone treatments remain to be determined, as the field is still in the process of integrating the data. Evidence from basic research supports the neuroprotective effects of hormone therapy (HT) in the central nervous system, yet data in humans are less clear. Several issues regarding the use of hormones as neuroprotective agents have emerged from ...

Index

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pp. 169-170