Effect of menopause on serum HDL-cholesterol level

There is a marked difference in the risk of coronary heart disease between men and women of reproductive age but this gap closes with advancing age. It seems likely that some factors of reproductive physiology are responsible for this. The present study was designed to evaluate the difference in HDL Cholesterol level in premenopausal and postmenopausal women in relation with change of estradiol level. Fifty premenopausal and 50 postmenopausal women were included in the study. Estradiol was estimated by radioimmuoassay while HDL-C was estimated by Kit method. There was a significant [p<0.01] decrease in the HDL-C level of the postmenopausal women [46.72'1.009] as compared with premenopausal women [63.68'1.78]. HDL-C is an independent risk factor for coronary heart disease. This study favours the view that decrease in estradiol level and associated decrease in HDL-C seen in postmenopausal women may be responsible for the increased risk of coronary heart disease after menopause

Comparison of total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol ratio by tertile of waist hip ration in postmenopausal women

The waist hip ratio [WHR] is a useful parameter to determine the distribution of fat. In women the fat is predominant in gluteal and femoral regions under the effects of oestrogen. After menopause oestrogen deficiency occurs and women become prone to masculine type of adipose tissue distribution that is high waist/hip circumference ratio. In addition to this the relative 'immunity' from CHD in female gender finishes at menopause. This study was aimed at determining a relation between WHR and TC/HDL-C ratio in postmenopausal women. The results of this study indicate that most [64%] postmenopausal women of the study population were having a large WHR and also showed TC/HDL-C ratios that were significantly more than the postmenopausal women with less WHR. In addition the mean TC/HDL-C ratio in this group was above the danger limit for this value, which suggests that a large percentage of our postmenopausal women are at a higher risk of CHD