The epidemiology of serum sex hormones in postmenopausal women

Journal Article · Thu Jun 01 00:00:00 EDT 1989 · American Journal of Epidemiology; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-5122(89)90030-3· OSTI ID:5028611

Cauley, J A; Kuller, L H; LeDonne, D ^[1]; Gutai, J P ^[2]; Powell, J G ^[3]

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1. Univ. of Pittsburgh, PA (USA)
2. Wayne State Univ., Detroit, MI (USA)
3. East Carolina School of Medicine, Greenville, NC (USA)

Serum sex hormones may be related to the risk of several diseases including osteoporosis, heart disease, and breast and endometrial cancer in postmenopausal women. In the current report, the authors examined the epidemiology of serum sex hormones in 176 healthy, white postmenopausal women (mean age 58 years) recruited from the metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, area. The data were collected during 1982-1983; none of the women were on estrogen replacement therapy. Serum concentrations of estrone, estradiol, testosterone, and androstenedione were measured by a combination of extraction, column chromatography, and radioimmunoassay. Neither age nor time since menopause was a significant predictor of sex hormones. The degree of obesity was a major determinant of estrone and estradiol. The estrone levels of obese women were about 40% higher than the levels of nonobese women. There was a weak relation between obesity and the androgens. Cigarette smokers had significantly higher levels of androstenedione than nonsmokers, with little difference in serum estrogens between smokers and nonsmokers. Both estrone and estradiol levels tended to decline with increasing alcohol consumption. Physical activity was an independent predictor of serum estrone. More active women had lower levels of estrone. There was a positive relation of muscle strength with estrogen levels. The data suggest interesting relations between environmental and lifestyle factors and serum sex hormones. These environmental and lifestyle factors are potentially modifiable and, hence, if associations between sex hormones and disease exist, modification of these factors could affect disease risks.

• OSTI ID: 5028611
• Journal Information: American Journal of Epidemiology; (USA), Journal Name: American Journal of Epidemiology; (USA) Vol. 129:6; ISSN 0002-9262; ISSN AJEPA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

550601* -- Medicine-- Unsealed Radionuclides in Diagnostics
62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
ANDROGENS
ANDROSTANES
ANIMALS
BIOASSAY
BODY
CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES
CORRELATIONS
DIAGNOSTIC TECHNIQUES
DISEASES
EPIDEMIOLOGY
ESTROGENS
FEMALE GENITALS
FEMALES
GLANDS
HORMONES
IMMUNOASSAY
IMMUNOLOGY
ISOTOPE APPLICATIONS
MAMMALS
MAMMARY GLANDS
MAN
MENOPAUSE
NEOPLASMS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANS
PRIMATES
RADIOASSAY
RADIOIMMUNOASSAY
RADIOIMMUNODETECTION
RADIOIMMUNOLOGY
SKELETAL DISEASES
STEROID HORMONES
STEROIDS
TRACER TECHNIQUES
UTERUS
VERTEBRATES
WOMEN