Menopause and Respiratory Health: The Role of Sex Hormones, Life Style Factors and Hormone Therapy, 2012

There is growing understanding of the importance of reproductive factors for respiratory health. Preventable factors such as smoking, obesity, physical activity and hormone therapy are known to affect both menopause and the airways. However, there is scarcely any knowledge on respiratory health changes during menopause, how sex hormones mediate such changes, or the potential for intervention. The issue is complex, and few study cohorts have sufficient information and numbers in the right age range. Understanding respiratory health changes during menopause is important, as women expect to live longer and with better life-quality, obesity is increasing globally with unknown consequences for reproductive and respiratory health, and obstructive lung diseases remain high in spite of decreasing smoking prevalence. The aim of this project was to study how menopause and the menopausal transition influences respiratory health (asthma, COPD, allergy and lung function), how potential changes are mediated by sex hormones, to identify effects of hormone therapy and of life-style factors (smoking, obesity, physical activity), and to design intervention strategies. Data from RHINE (Respiratory health i Northern Europe) and ECRHS (European Cohort Respiratory Health Survey) were used. These cohorts include extensive longitudinal data about respiratory and reproductive health, and blood samples from two time points 5-10 years apart available for hormone analyses.

For further information about ”Menopause and Respiratory Health: The Role of Sex Hormones, Life Style Factors and Hormone Therapy, 2012”, please contact the principal investigator.

学界对生殖因素与呼吸系统健康的关联重要性已有愈发深入的认知。已知吸烟、肥胖、体力活动与激素治疗等可干预因素，会同时对绝经状态与气道健康产生影响。然而，目前学界对绝经期间呼吸系统健康的变化、性激素如何介导此类变化，以及相关干预的潜在可能性仍知之甚少。该研究议题较为复杂，且鲜有研究队列能在合适的年龄范围内获取足够的样本量与详实数据。明确绝经期间呼吸系统健康的变化意义重大：一方面女性预期寿命不断延长，对生活质量的要求也随之提升；另一方面全球肥胖患病率持续攀升，其对生殖与呼吸系统健康的影响尚未明确；同时尽管吸烟率有所下降，阻塞性肺疾病的患病率仍居高不下。本项目旨在探究绝经及围绝经期如何影响呼吸系统健康（涵盖哮喘、慢性阻塞性肺疾病、过敏与肺功能），明确性激素对这类潜在变化的介导作用，识别激素治疗与生活方式因素（吸烟、肥胖、体力活动）的相关影响，并制定针对性的干预策略。本研究使用了北欧呼吸系统健康研究（RHINE, Respiratory Health in Northern Europe）与欧洲队列呼吸系统健康调查（ECRHS, European Cohort Respiratory Health Survey）的数据。上述研究队列均包含呼吸系统与生殖健康的大规模纵向随访数据，且可获取两次间隔5至10年的血液样本用于性激素分析。若需了解"Menopause and Respiratory Health: The Role of Sex Hormones, Life Style Factors and Hormone Therapy"（2012）一文的更多详情，请联系项目首席研究员。