Morphologic and morphometric aspects of the endometrium of postmenopausal women before and after cyclic oestrogen replacement treatment.

Objective: The aim of the study is to observe the morphology and morphometry of the endometrium of postmenopausal women treated with cyclic conjugated oestrogens. Study design: Three groups of nine postmenopausal women received cyclic conjugated oestrogens for 21 days (with a seven-day pause) during six months. The endometrial specimens were obtained using a modified Novak suction curet, in the second or third day of the period of drug washout. The slides were stained with haematoxylin and eosin (H.E.) in order to measure epithelial height and determine the gland/stroma ratio. Results: Morphologic examination showed that single daily doses of 0.3 mg of conjugated oestrogens caused discrete endometrial proliferation after three and six months of treatment. However, a more intense effect was observed in women receiving doses of 0.625 and 1.25 mg/day of the hormone, in the same period. Morphometric study revealed significant increases both in epithelial thickness and in the gland-stroma ratio, specially in women receiving higher doses of the conjugated oestrogen (0.625 and 1.25 mg/day). Conclusions: We concluded that there were marked proliferative alterations without atypias in the endometrium of women that received 0.625 and 1.25 mg of conjugated oestrogens during six months.