title: Early menopause does not influence left ventricular diastolic dysfunction: A clinical observational study in healthy subjects.
abstract: The prevalence of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD) sharply increases in women after their 50s and may contribute to the high prevalence of diastolic heart failure in elderly women. A decrease in estrogen levels after menopause is postulated to be one of the mechanisms responsible for this phenomenon. However, there is a paucity of data on the relationship between the timing of menopause and the progression of LVDD in the clinical setting; thus, we investigated this relationship in healthy postmenopausal women.
  
  
  
  We enrolled 115 women and divided them into two groups according to median menopause age: 61 who experienced menopause at ≤50 years (early menopause group), and 54 who experienced menopause at >50 years (late menopause group). We compared the echocardiographic and clinical characteristics between the two groups.
  
  
  
  There were no significant differences in LV diastolic parameters (mitral E/A, p=0.561; e', p=0.052; E/e', p=0.081; DCT, p=0.082; prevalence of LVDD class, p=0.801), as well as other echocardiographic parameters and clinical characteristics between the two groups. Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that the independent determinants of LVDD were age and body mass index, but not the timing of menopause.
  
  
  
  Early menopause did not influence the progression of LVDD in postmenopausal women. The sharp progression of LVDD in elderly women is complex and probably influenced by multiple factors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Megumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirokawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Clinical Laboratory, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: daimon@muf.biglobe.ne.jp.
authors.forename: Masao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Daimon
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Seitetsu L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nakao
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Takayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawata
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoko S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Kato
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan; Clinical Research Support Center, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mizuno
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Masafumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Laboratory, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yatomi
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Support Center, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Tsutomu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamazaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Issei
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Komuro
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003971:Diastole / Q000502:physiology*; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler; D005260:Female; D064368:Healthy Volunteers; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008593:Menopause / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D013318:Stroke Volume / Q000502:physiology; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: Diastolic function; Echocardiography; Gender differences; Heart failure