Determinants of the effect of estrogen on the progression of subclinical atherosclerosis: Estrogen in the Prevention of Atherosclerosis Trial

Abstract

Unopposed 17beta-estradiol reduced carotid IMT progression in postmenopausal women in part by increasing HDL-cholesterol and decreasing LDL-cholesterol. Although women randomized to estradiol showed improvement in all the markers of carbohydrate metabolism, these factors did not play a significant role in carotid IMT progression.