Skeletal effect of natural early menopause.

It is well-known that women with spontaneous or natural early menopause (NEM) (between ages of 40 and 45 yr) experience an increased risk of overall mortality, cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis, neurological and/or psychiatric diseases, and other sequelae. On the contrary, the role of NEM is more contentious on the long-term bone consequences. The published data highlight that NEM has an ambiguous effect on bone mineral density, and is associated with an increased incidence of fractures, likely related to other risk factors rather than to osteoporosis. Therefore, an estrogen treatment should be considered for these women, especially if osteopenia is present at age of menopause.