Postmenopausal estrogen therapy and cardiovascular disease in women

The purpose of this study was to analyze the relationship between postmenopausal estrogen therapy and the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD), giving consideration to the other coexisting CAD risk factors of obesity, smoking, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and CAD history. A retrospective descriptive research design was utilized. Data were collected using a researcher-designed survey that included subject interview and medical record review. The sample of 36 postmenopausal women was classified into 3 groups according to estrogen use: current users (n=9), past users (n=5), and those who had never used estrogen (n=22). The data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics and nonparametric tests. A p=0.05 level of significance was used. A Fisher’s exact test showed no statistically significant differences among the estrogen groups in the presence of CAD or presence of obesity, smoking, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and CAD history. A Cramer’s V was used for analysis of relationships in the study. A low positive correlation (PH).26) was found between estrogen use and the presence of CAD, however this was not statistically significant. A strong positive relationship (r=1.00) was found between history of CAD and presence of CAD in past users of estrogen (n=5), which was significant at p=0.03. The benefit of estrogen therapy as a means of CAD prevention in postmenopausal women cannot be inferred from the results of this study.