Gallbladder Disease - Hormone Therapy And Disease: Menopause
Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School
Gallbladder disease
Estrogen raises the level of cholesterol in bile, a substance produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder. This promotes the growth of gallstones. Data from the Nurses' Health Study found that taking estrogen, with or without progestogen, increased the likelihood of needing cholecystectomy (surgery to remove the gallbladder). The higher the dose of hormone therapy and the longer its use, the more likely a woman was to have the surgery. Five years after they stopped, women who had used hormones still had a higher risk of having cholecystectomy than women who never had taken hormones. The WHI findings corroborated these results, showing an increased risk that more than doubled after five years of hormone use.
| Last updated: | August 13, 2007 |
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Medical content reviewed by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.
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