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Women’s Health Initiative Critique

Meaning

The Women’s Health Initiative Critique refers to the detailed, retrospective scientific and clinical analysis of the initial findings and subsequent re-evaluations of the large-scale Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) trials on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for postmenopausal women. This critique highlights the methodological limitations, including the exclusive use of older, high-risk subjects and specific synthetic hormone formulations, which led to a generalized, and often misapplied, negative public health message regarding HRT. It advocates for a personalized, evidence-based approach to hormonal intervention, differentiating between synthetic and bioidentical hormones and considering the timing of initiation.