[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 30 (Tuesday, February 15, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Page 7752]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-2829]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


State-of-the-Science Conference on Management of Menopausal 
Symptoms; Notice

    Notice is hereby given of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 
``State-of-the-Science Conference on Management of Menopausal 
Symptoms'' to be held March 21-23, 2005, in the NIH Natcher Conference 
Center, 45 Center Drive, Bethesda, Maryland 20892. The conference will 
begin at 8 a.m. on March 21 and 22, at 9 a.m. on March 23, and will be 
open to the public.
    Women going through the menopause transition may experience a 
variety of symptoms, ranging from hot flashes, night sweats, and 
problems sleeping to loss of sexual desire, depression, vaginal 
dryness, and urinary and bleeding complaints. As many as two-thirds of 
all women may experience vasomotor symptoms, such as hot flashes and 
night sweats, in the years around the menopause transition. For some, 
the resulting discomfort greatly diminishes their quality of life.
    For many decades menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) using estrogen 
(or, in a woman with a uterus, a combination of estrogen and a 
progestin) has been the therapy of choice for relieving menopause-
related symptoms. But recently, several large clinical trials have 
found mixed results: a greater chance of serious health problems such 
as blood clots, stroke, heart disease, or breast cancer, and benefits 
like fewer hip fractures in certain groups of women using MHT. It is 
not clear how these findings apply to women with symptoms because these 
clinical trials were not designed to study such women but rather to 
test whether MHT could prevent chronic diseases or conditions of aging, 
such as heart disease or cognitive decline. Nevertheless, many women 
and their doctors are concerned about the use of MHT for their 
menopausal symptoms and interested in learning about alternatives.
    Research has identified a number of hormonal and non-hormonal 
approaches that show promise for managing menopause-related symptoms. 
We urgently need a careful examination of these strategies for symptom 
management to provide women and their health care providers with 
options that will best control their symptoms and restore their quality 
of life.
    During the first two days of the conference, experts will present 
information on the biology of the menopause transition, the nature of 
the symptoms women experience, and strategies for relieving the common 
problems associated with the menopause transition. After weighing all 
of the scientific evidence, an independent panel will prepare and 
present a state-of-the-science statement answering the following key 
conference questions:
     What is the evidence that the symptoms more frequently 
reported by middle-aged women are attributable to ovarian aging and 
senescence?
     When do the menopausal symptoms appear, how long do they 
persist and with what frequency and severity, and what is known about 
the factors that influence them?
     What is the evidence for the benefits and harms of 
commonly used interventions for relief of menopause-related symptoms?
     What are the important considerations in managing 
menopause-related symptoms in women with clinical characteristics or 
circumstances that may complicate decision-making?
     What are the future research directions for treatment of 
menopause-related symptoms and conditions?
    On the final day of the conference, the panel chair will read the 
draft statement to the conference audience and invite comments and 
questions. A press conference will follow to allow the panel and chair 
to respond to questions from the media.
    The National Institute on Aging and the NIH Office of Medical 
Applications of Research are the primary sponsors of this meeting.
    Advance information about the conference and conference 
registration materials may be obtained from American Institutes for 
Research of Silver Spring, Maryland, by calling 888-644-2667 or by 
sending e-mail to [email protected]. American Institutes for Research's 
mailing address is 10720 Columbia Pike, Silver Spring, MD 20901. 
Registration information is also available on the NIH Consensus 
Development Program Web site at http://consensus.nih.gov.
    Please Note: The NIH has recently instituted new security measures 
to ensure the safety of NIH employees, visitors, patients, and 
facilities. All visitors must be prepared to show a photo ID upon 
request. Visitors may be required to pass through a metal detector and 
have bags, backpacks, or purses inspected or x-rayed as they enter NIH 
buildings. For more information about the new security measures, please 
visit the Web site at http://www.nih.gov/about/visitorssecurity.htm.

    Dated: February 8, 2005.
Raynard S. Kington,
Deputy Director, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 05-2829 Filed 2-14-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P