| Objective The aim of this study was to determine the influence of long -term low- dose hormone replacement therapy (HRT) on the carotid atherosclerosis of postmenopausal women by means of ultrasonic imaging. Methods 146 postmenopausal women, being (67.79± 7.27) yr. old and having the same conditions, were divided into two Groups, i.e. HRT group (68 cases) and control group (78 cases), based on taking and not taking HRT. The intima and the media thickness (IMT) and the carotid atherosclerosis plaques features of the two groups were measured and also the peak systolic velocity (PSV) of blood flow and the resistance indexes (RI) at the internal carotid arteries on both sides were measured by ultrasonic examination. Results The mean IMT of HRT group was (0.089±0.22)cm, the mean IMT of control group was (0.093 ± 0.29)cm, and there was a significant difference between the two groups (P<0.01).The percentage of plaque formation in HRT group was 7.7%, while that of control group was 12.7%, and also there was a significant difference (P<0.05). The plaques were often located at the bifurcation of the arteries. The percentage of the soft and mixed plaques in HRT group was significantly less than that of control group and the percentage of the hard plaques of HRT group was higher than that of control group. The percentage of soft plaque of HRT group was 1.7%, while that of control group was 4.5%. The mixed plaque percentage of HRT group was 3.1%, while that of control group was 6.7%. The hard plaque percentage of HRT group was 2.6%, while that of control group was 1.3%, and P<0.05.The study showed that there is a possibility that HRT has an effect to make the plaques denser and more stable. The plaque thickness of HRT group was smaller than that of control group, the narrowing rate of blood vessel of hormone group was lower than that of control group and there... |
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