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The use of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) by senior Canadian women in five provinces has dropped from 14% to 5% since the publication of the 2002 Women's Health Initiative (WHI) study, which found the health risks of using HRT outweighed the benefits. A new analysis of public drug claims from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) shows that the use of HRT among female seniors (aged 65 and older) in five provinces declined each year between 2001-2002 and 2006-2007, with the highest average annual rate of decline (30%) occurring in the two-year period following the publication of the WHI study. The five provinces included in the CIHI analysis were Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

"Up until the late-1990s, many women were prescribed hormone replacement therapy because of its success in relieving the symptoms of menopause and its reported protective benefits in coronary heart disease and osteoporosis," says Dr. Jennifer Blake, obstetrician and gynecologist in chief at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. "New evidence highlighting the potential risks of HRT, as well as its lack of benefit in preventing heart disease, has forced caregivers and patients to re-examine its use, particularly in elderly patients. CIHI's study highlights a great example of how new information can be used to immediately improve practices and advance patient safety."