articlePsychological MedicineJan 1, 2026HYBRID OA

Emotional and cognitive effects of menopause and hormone replacement therapy

University of Cambridge · Cambridge School · +2 more institutions

PubMed
Indexed incrossrefpubmed

Abstract

Background

Menopause is a natural physiological process, but its effects on the brain remain poorly understood. In England, approximately 15% of women use hormone-replacement therapy (HRT) to manage menopausal symptoms. However, the psychological benefits of HRT are not well established. This study aims to investigate the impact of menopause and HRT on mental health, cognitive function, and brain structure.

Methods

We analyzed data from nearly 125,000 participants in the UK Biobank to assess associations between menopause, HRT use, and outcomes related to mental health, cognition, and brain morphology. Specifically, we focused on gray matter volumes in the medial temporal lobe (MTL) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC).

Citation impact

6
total citations
FWCI
84.11
Percentile
100%
References
46
Too recent for citation history.

Authors

6

Topics & keywords

Keywords
  • Menopause
  • Hormone replacement therapy (female-to-male)
  • Cognition
  • Mental health
  • Estrogen replacement therapy
  • Adverse effect
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Funding