Menopause changes the brain
Rance, and other researchers in this field, see fezolinetant’s progress as a sign of the seriousness with which research is being conducted into the causes and symptoms of menopausal syndromes. The number of women who are postmenopausal is expected to reach one billion in the next few decades. Many women struggle to get care for menopause and the research on how to best manage symptoms is still lacking. This is slowly changing. More researchers are entering the field, armed with better animal models and an increasing literature on the effectiveness of existing treatments.
Menopause and its transition, also known as perimenopause could be the key to brain health later in life. There are even some hints that this could be linked with neurodegenerative disorders, like Alzheimer’s.
Fezolinetant, and other similar drugs that are in development, also represent a change in thinking. From menopause being a condition affecting the female reproductive organs to one that is focused on neurological effects and causes. Hadine Joffe is a Harvard Medical School researcher who studies mental health in women and aging. The notion that the brain is at the forefront of menopause is a completely different concept.
Source:
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-023-01474-3
