Decline in skin collagen content and metacarpal index after the menopause and its prevention with sex hormone replacement.
Level 3 - non-randomized controlled study
Non-randomized cross-sectional comparative study
PubMed 3828252 · doi:10.1111/j.1471-0528.1987.tb02338.x
What was done
Thigh skin collagen content and metacarpal index were measured in 106 postmenopausal women, comparing 69 untreated women against 37 women who had received estradiol and testosterone implants for 2 to 10 years.
What was found
Skin collagen content significantly correlated positively with the metacarpal index in both groups. In untreated women, both thigh skin collagen content and metacarpal index showed a statistically significant decline with increasing years since menopause. This decline was reported as prevented in women receiving hormone implants. No specific numerical values, correlation coefficients, or p-values were reported in the abstract.
Why it matters
The findings link postmenopausal bone thinning to skin connective tissue loss and suggest that long-term sex hormone replacement may help preserve both tissues.
Limits
The study is an observational, non-randomized cross-sectional comparison with a modest sample size (n = 106 total). Treatment duration varied substantially (2 to 10 years), baseline pre-treatment measurements were absent, and no numerical estimates or confidence intervals were provided in the abstract.
Cited by
- supports Women lose 30% of their skin's collagen thickness in the first 5 years following menopause.