Table 4.
Characteristics of included studies concerning lipid profile and vascular changes.
| Study | Menopause Symptoms |
Character of the Study | Number of Participants | Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Study Group | Control Group | |||||
| Guetta et al. (1995) [43] | Plasma lipid profile levels (LDL-C, HDL, TC, and TG) | The randomised, interventional clinical trial | 10 postmenopausal women received vitamin E monotherapy (800 IU/day) for 6 weeks | 9 postmenopausal women received a 17 beta-estradiol (0.1 mg/day) patch monotherapy (changed every 3 days) for 3 weeks | During combined phase all included subjects (n = 19) took vitamin E 800 IU/day for 6 weeks, and used the 17B-estradiol patch (changed every 3 days) for the last 3 weeks of this period | Combined administration of estradiol and vitamin E decreases LDL oxidation with no synergism. |
| Wander et al. (1996) [44] | Copper-catalysed oxidation of LDL | The double-blind crossover trial | 48 postmenopausal women received vitamin E (0, 100, 200, and 400 mg/day of a-tocopherol acetate) in different time for 4 weeks, as by the end of the study each subject had received all four doses of vitamin E. 24 women received no estrogens. |
48 postmenopausal women received placebo for 4 weeks. 22 women used oral therapy (0.625 mg estrogens and 10 mg medroxyprogesterone), one used a transdermal patch, and one received estrogen injections. |
Vitamin E provides protection LDL from copper-catalysed oxidation. The usage of estrogens and fish oil independently decreases LDL modification. This process is dependent on the vitamin E doses. | |
| Inal et al. (1997) [45] | TC, HDL, VLDL, LDL, MDA, SOD and GSH-Px levels. | The randomised, interventional clinical trial | 22 postmenopausal women received received transdermal estradiol (3 weeks a month) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (10 mg/day) (during the last 10 days of treatment) and vitamin E (600 mg/day) for 6 months. Levels of blood lipids was compared to premenopausal women. |
22 postmenopausal women received transdermal estradiol (0.05 g/day) for 6 months (3 weeks a month). 22 postmenopausal women received transdermal estradiol (3 weeks a month) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (10 mg/day) (during the last 10 days of treatment). The duration of the study was 6 months. Levels of blood lipids was compared to premenopausal women. |
Combined therapy with estradiol, medroxyprogesterone acetateand vitamin E leads to improvement in lipid profile. | |
| Koh et al. (1999) [46] | Plasma lipid profile levels (LDL-C, HDL, TC, and TG) | The double-blind, 3-period crossover study | 28 postmenopausal women received vitamin E (800 IU/day) or a combination of the both therapies per day for each of three 6-week treatment periods, with 6 weeks off all therapies between treatment periods. | 28 postmenopausal women received conjugated equine estrogens 0.625 mg/d and placebo or a combination of the both therapies per day for each of three 6-week treatment periods, with 6 weeks off all therapies between treatment periods. | Vitamin E as a supplement to estrogen therapy improves arterial endothelium-dependent vasodilator responsiveness consistent with increased nitric oxide. | |
| Rasool et al. (2003) [47] | arterial stiffness, blood pressure | The randomized, crossover, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial | 10 postmenopausal women received vitamin E (400 IU/day) for 10 weeks. | 10 postmenopausal women received a placebo for 10 weeks. | Vitamin E does not affect arterial stiffness and blood pressure in postmenopausal women. | |
| Ushiroyama et al. (2006) [48] | Chilly sensation. Blood flow measured by laser Doppler under the jaw, in the middle finger, and in the third toe. |
The randomised, interventional clinical trial | 60 postmenopausal women received vitamin E (600 mg tocopherol nictinate/day) for 8 weeks. | 60 postmenopausal women received a Wen-jing-tang (7.5 g/day) for 8 weeks. | Wen-jing-tang more effectively improves, in comparison to vitamin E, blood flow in peripheral tissue and is more effective in treatment of chilli sensations. | |
| Cancelo Hidalgo et al. (2006) [41] | Metabolic changes (weight, blood pressure, triglycerides and LDL-level), vasomotor symptoms | The interventional clinical trial | 478 postmenopausal women received isoflavones 120 mg/day, primrose oil 880 mg/day and vitamin E 20 mg/day for 6 months. | 447 postmenopausal women received isoflavones 60 mg/day, primrose oil 440 mg/day g and vitamin E 10 mg/day for 6 months. | Vitamin E, isoflavones and primrose supplementation have no influence on weight or blood pressure. Level of triglycerides and LDL-cholesterol levels tends to decrease, however not significantly | |
| Alves Luzia et al. (2015) [49] | Plasma lipid profile levels (LDL-C, HDL, TC, and TG) | The randomised placebo-controlled trial | 19 postmenopausal women received vitamin E (400 IU/day) and fish oil for 3 months. | 18 postmenopausal women received a placebo for 3 months. 22 postmenopausal women received fish oil for 3 months. |
Supplementation of Fish oil plus vitamin E decreases TC and LDL blood level. | |
| Rezasoltani et al. (2021) [50] | Plasma lipid profile levels (LDL-C, HDL, TC, and TG) | The double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, cross-over. Phase I/II trial |
41 postmenopausal women received vitamin E (400 IU/day) for 4 weeks and after an 8-day pause period, placebo for next 4 weeks. | 42 postmenopausal women received a placebo for 4 weeks and after an 8-day pause period, vitamin E for next 4 weeks. | Vitamin E showed no significant influence on the lipid profile in menopausal women. | |
TC—Total cholesterol, TG—triglycerides, HDL—high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, VLDL—very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, LDL—low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, LDL-C—low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, MDA—malondialdehyde, SOD—superoxide dismutase, GSH-Px—glutathione peroxidase, IU—International Units.