One of the major social issues nowadays is the aging society. Korea is already an aging society, and 63 cities and districts are ultra-aged societies where the rate of people older than 65 yr exceeds 20%. Among them, more than 67% are women. These statistics reveal the importance of healthcare for older women. Disease and disability of older women are very closely related to the loss of female sex hormones after menopause. Major hormone-dependent aging problems in women such as osteoporosis, Alzheimer's disease (AD), urinary incontinence, and coronary atherosclerosis were surveyed in this review, and the key role of hormones in those diseases and hormone replacement therapy (HRT) were summarized. We expect that this review would provide some understanding of factors that must be considered to give optimal care to older women for healthy lives.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Aging/*physiology ; Alzheimer Disease/drug therapy/metabolism/*physiopathology ; Female ; Gonadal Steroid Hormones/*metabolism/physiology/therapeutic use ; Hormone Replacement Therapy ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Osteoporosis/drug therapy/metabolism/*physiopathology