Loss of estrogen in postmenopausal women puts them at high risk for lumbar disc degeneration.

Declining estrogen levels during perimenopausal and menopausal years is associated with severe lumbar disc degeneration reports a study published online June 12, 2017 in journal Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), 80 percent of adults will experience lower back pain sometime during their lives, and during any given three-month period, 25 percent of us will complain of pain in that area.

Intervertebral disc degeneration is one of the most common mechanical cause of lower back pain and it is so common that it is sometimes considered a normal part of aging.

Many studies have documented an association between estrogen deficiency and disc degeneration and benefits of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) in maintaining the lumbar disc height in post-menopausal women. This study is unique because it has included age matched men as comparison group.

The study was carried out in China and the study cohort consisted of 1,566 women and 1,382 age-matched men who were admitted for low back pain from June 2013 to October 2016.

Demographic of both groups were obtained along with information on years since menopause (YSM). All participants received a MRI to evaluate the spine.

During the younger years, men were more prone to disc degeneration as compared to age matched women (P < 0.05).

As men and women aged, postmenopausal women were significantly more prone to develop more severe disc degeneration than age-matched men (P < 0.05) and premenopausal and perimenopausal women (P < 0.01).

The most severe degeneration was seen within the first 15 years of menopause at all disc levels from L1 to S1.

Dr. JoAnn Pinkerton, executive director of NAMS says “This study shows that menopause is associated with more severe disc degeneration, Prevention of disc degeneration of the lumbar spine may be another potential benefit for symptomatic menopausal women who may be candidates for hormone therapy.”

The authors call upon more studies to determine whether age or estrogen deficiency is responsible for the progression of disc degeneration at lumbar spine.