A total of 71 postmenopausal women ages 50-65 on estrogen therapy will be randomized to continue or discontinue use of estrogen and will be followed for two years.~Participants will undergo PET and MRI scans and neuropsychological assessments initially and at the end of the two-year follow-up period. These procedures will allow us to evaluate brain metabolism and cognitive performance at baseline and two years following continuation or discontinuation of estrogen therapy.~We hypothesize that women who discontinue estrogen will show more evidence of decline than those who continue estrogen. This project will expand current knowledge of effects of estrogen by 1) determining whether estrogen use among postmenopausal women at risk for cognitive decline is protective of brain metabolism, 2) identifying early predictors for cognitive decline, and 3) developing guidelines for estrogen use in postmenopausal women.
This study is designed to assess the effects of estrogen therapy among postmenopausal women at risk for cognitive decline.