Lesson series

Menopause and Cardiometabolic Health: Understanding Risks, Treatment Strategies and Iron Hypothesis

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This course, part of the CAS Sex and Gender-Specific Medicine from University of Zurich and Bern, provides participants with an in-depth understanding of the complex relationship between menopause and women’s health, with a focus on its impact on cardiometabolic diseases By exploring hormonal changes of menopause, the timing of menopause, appearance of menopausal symptoms, and the cardiometabolic risks associated with it, participants will gain valuable insights into how menopause affects long-term health outcomes. We will also examine current treatment strategies, and discuss emerging hypotheses such as the Iron vs. Estrogen Hypothesis in relation to cardiovascular risk.
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  Aims

  • Understand the Basics of Menopause and Health: Introduce participants to the biological processes of menopause and its impact on women’s health, particularly regarding diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
  • Analyze Menopause Timing and Health Risks: Evaluate how early, normal, and late menopause influence long-term health outcomes such as diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
  • Assess Cardiometabolic Risk in Postmenopausal Women: Explore how menopause contributes to increased risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and osteoporosis.
  • Evaluate Treatment Strategies and Prevention: Discuss various management strategies, particularly hormone therapy and phytoestrogens for mitigating menopause-related health risks.
  • Examine the Iron vs. Estrogen Hypothesis: Discuss the role of iron and estrogen in the development of sex differences in cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, focusing on how these pathways could alter cardiovascular risk related to menopause.

  Content

  • Overview of Menopause: The biological and hormonal changes during menopause and their impact on metabolic and overall health.· Cardiometabolic Risks of Menopause: The effects of menopause on diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and osteoporosis risk.
  • Menopause Timing and Its Impact on Health: Understanding the risks associated with early, normal, and late menopause.
  • Menopausal symptoms and cardiometabolic health: Provide new insights into common menopausal symptoms, and how they can affect risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and life spam.
  • Hormone Therapy and cardiometabolic and other health outcomes: Discussing the benefits, risks, and controversies surrounding hormone therapy, as well as non-hormonal treatments and lifestyle changes.
  • The Iron vs. Estrogen Hypothesis: Exploring the hypothesis that interactions between iron and estrogen influence cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, with a focus on how menopause alters these pathways.

  Methods

The introduction to the topic takes place via online video lectures, literature reading, and tests. At the end, a test is provided to assess your knowledge

  Target audience

Healthcare and public health professionals, as well as researchers with an interest in the topic.
Meet our lecturer

Taulant Muka, MD, PhD, PD

Dr. Taulant Muka has published over 180 peer-reviewed scientific articles, with a research focus on women's health, particularly menopause and cardiometabolic disease risk. Utilizing various methodologies, including cohort studies, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses,

Dr. Muka has demonstrated how menopause timing could affect risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and that estrogen may contribute to increased risk of diabetes and stroke in postmenopausal women. His work has also highlighted the potential benefits of complementary therapies, such as phytoestrogens, in alleviating menopausal symptoms and reducing cardiometabolic risk. More recently, he has investigated the iron hypothesis, exploring how iron levels influence menopause and sex differences in cardiometabolic health.
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