-And we move now to this month's "Your Brain Health Matters."

Alzheimer's disease affects women differently and more often.

Researchers at UNLV's Kirk Kekorian School of Medicine are trying to better understand why.

And for Amanda Osse, Assistant Professor in the Department of Brain Health, the work is personal.

-My grandpa had Alzheimer's disease, and then my husband's grandmother had Alzheimer's disease.

And we watched both of them go through this.

And what was interesting is that they both went through it very differently.

So especially being a man and a woman, it makes you wonder if that played a role in how they both progressed differently and presented some of the symptoms differently.

So the prevalence shows that about two-thirds of Alzheimer's disease cases are women, so we know that there's a difference that is happening in the prevalence.

Why?

There's some things that could be playing a role, but there's a lot of research that still needs to be done for us to fully understand why that is happening in women versus men.

-Could you start with some sort of explanation?

(Amanda Osse) Yeah.

There's social factors that can play a role.

So women tend to have more caretaking responsibilities and higher stress levels.

They tend to not have time to do things like exercise or eat healthy.

There's also biological differences.

So men and women have differences in their brain makeup that affects how the brain functions and also things like hormone changes that happen throughout the life, especially with women going through menopause.

And I think that's where the conversation is now starting to emerge about what we can do to be protecting our brain during this transition.

-One area of that conversation centers on hormone replacement therapy and what role it may play in women's brain health during menopause.

Nevada Week discussed that with Dr.

Kate Jhong, a research professor in UNLV's Department of Brain Health, who says the thinking around HRT is changing.

(Dr.

Kate Zhong) Menopause really is such a shift of our body, of our brain health.

And then this is where people have to be so vigilant about what you should be doing during that particular transitional period of time.

In the early 2000s, almost 20-some years ago, there were large studies really looking at the role of hormones and women's health.

And that study, or group of studies, have indicated that there are some risks associated with using of hormone replacement therapy, including higher incidence of stroke and potentially higher incidence of dementia.

Now fast forward.

Nowadays we understand looking at the data.

The design of the study were somewhat flawed, and then the data was at a certain level misinterpreted and, even more importantly, it was applied to a much broader population.

By that I mean the original study only looked at women who were older than 65 and who started the treatment much later after the onset of the menopause.

But then because of the study, then they apply broadly to all women and regardless of their age, regardless of the onset of their menopause.

So now with the understanding and research we have done, that has been shifted in a very significant and positive way.

So the key is timing really matters, so it's when the initiation of the hormonal therapy should be considered.

And the current recommendation is that it really should start as soon as possible and really should start ideally for those who are under 65 or if not younger.

It's a matter of when that is used, how is it used, and what kind of formulation?

Because the hormonal therapy also comes in different formulation.

It can be in the pill format, it can be in transdermal patch, and it can be in gels, so and so forth.

So then they-- we are really now moving from a mindset of a very broad range of caution, almost fear, to more individualized, more personalized, and more precise approach.

So I'm so pleased to see that we are making such a big change in the direction that will make the hormone treatment available for so many women who can potentially truly benefit from that.

-So women who are watching this and who have thought that hormone replacement therapy may be a bad thing, what would you tell them?

Go talk to your doctor about it?

-I would say, yes, go talk to a doctor is a very important step.

And also I think just find more information.

Go on FDS website.

Go on the public education website.

The key is that not two women are alike, right?

So I think you have to really think about you, Amber, for example, your age, your risk factors, and also your overall symptoms, because now the hormonal therapy is really indicated for people who have symptoms, for example, the hot flashes and, you know, all the menopause associated symptoms.

We need to be clear that estrogen or the hormonal therapy is not a treatment for Alzheimer's or dementia.

However, when people benefit from the treatment--that their cardiovascular condition improve, their sleep improve, their mood improve--that can all positively impact on the overall brain health.

-In 2024, the medical journal The Lancet reported that nearly half of dementia cases could be prevented or delayed by addressing certain health and lifestyle risk factors.