The Telegraph: HRT patches may be safer than tablets researchers suggest

Hormone replacement therapy delivered through a skin patch instead of a tablet may be safer for women, doctors have suggested as research shows it does not increase the risk of stroke. A study has found that women who use low doses of HRT through a patch to combat the symptoms of the menopause are at no greater risk of suffering a stroke than those not using the medication… The research conducted by a team in Canada and Germany examined the records of more than 800,000 women. Lead author Christel Renoux, a research fellow at McGill University, in Montreal, Canada, wrote: "We found that use of low dose transdermal oestrogen replacement therapy with or without progestogen was not associated with an increased risk of stroke, although a slightly increased risk with long term use cannot be excluded.