Estrogen Patch May Be More Heart Friendly

Unlike estrogen pills, skin patches used to deliver estrogen don't raise blood levels of a protein linked to increased risk of heart disease, says a small study.

But it's too early to conclude that the patch is a safer form of hormone therapy, principal investigator Dr. Wanpen Vongpatanasin of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center told HealthScout News.

The study of 21 women only looked at a marker of heart disease called C-reactive protein. But it didn't compare the long-term effects of different forms of hormone therapy.

The researchers found that eight weeks of treatment with estrogen pills raised C-reactive protein levels by more than two-fold. There was no change in C-reactive protein levels while women used the patch or were on a placebo.

-- Robert Preidt and Scott Roberts

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