Raloxifene May Reduce One Cause of Stroke

March 27th, 2006

New research has found women with higher natural estrogen levels may have a greater risk of stroke. High levels of estrogen are linked to obesity, which is also a factor in raising the odds of a stroke. The drug raloxifene (Evista) may guard women against this potential risk.  The study led by Dr. Jennifer Lee of UCSF was presented this month at an American Stroke Association conference.

The four-year study involved 7,290 women – in which 4,843 took raloxifene and the others a dummy pill. Raloxifene is a designer estrogen that blocks that hormone’s action to the breast, for example, while providing beneficial effects to the bones.

The drug appeared to lower stroke risk in those with highest levels of a form of estrogen called estradiol, the most potent kind in estrogen circulating in the bloodstream. Women taking placebo pills had no detectable postmenopausal levels of estradiol at the study’s conclusion. Dr. Lee’s results factored in the women’s weights, their ages and other heart and stroke risk factors.

Dr. Lee estimates that if recent results prove true in additional studies, perhaps one stroke might be prevented for every 78 women given raloxifene. The drug is used to treat osteoporosis and also inhibit development or recurrence of estrogen-dependent breast cancers. Preliminary evidence suggests that taking hormones after menopause is especially risky for women with naturally high estradiol levels.

San Francisco Chronicle, 2/18/06 (Marilynn Marchione, Associated Press report)

Entry Filed under: PRESCRIPTION DRUGS,Stroke