Abstract
Aims: In the current study, we explored the potential effects of hormone therapy (HT) on language functioning in healthy, postmenopausal women and compared them with men of similar ages. Materials & methods: Language functioning on tasks of verbal fluency and object naming was examined in 100 participants (mean age: 61.9 years; 33 HT users, 15 HT non-users and 52 men) at baseline and follow-up (mean follow-up time period: 2.6 years). Results: At baseline, men had higher composite language scores than HT users. However, HT users demonstrated more improvement over time compared with men, whereas HT non-users performed similarly to men, with no improvement over time. Longer duration of HT use was not associated with improved performance on language tests. Conclusion: These results suggest an association between HT use and better language ability in postmenopausal women.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The work was supported by an NIH NRSA 1F31AG035438-01 to GW Small and colleagues and by NIH grants P01-AG025831, AG13308, P50 AG 16570, MH/AG58156, MH52453; AG10123; M01-RR00865, the Department of Energy (DOE contract DE-FC03–87-ER60615); General Clinical Research Centers Program; the Fran and Ray Stark Foundation Fund for Alzheimer‘s Disease Research; and the Ahmanson Foundation. GW Small reports having served as a consultant and/or having received lecture fees from Dakim, Lilly and Novartis. GW Small also reports having received stock options from Dakim, Inc. KJ Miller reports having received grant funding and having served as a consultant for Dakim, Inc. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.