OQ-01: Does any treatment make a lasting, meaningful difference to menopausal skin?
Status: open. Status as of . Version 1.0.
This page describes research, not your skin. Talk to your own doctor about your situation.
What we can say today
Researchers do not yet know whether any treatment makes a lasting, meaningful difference to the skin changes that come with menopause. A 2024 review found no approved effective treatment for these changes. Hormone therapy may help to some degree, and most other options remain untested.
Why it matters
Many people notice their skin change around menopause: it feels drier, thinner or slower to recover. When they look for help, they find a crowded market of claims and very little research that matches their situation. A clear account of what has and has not been tested helps readers judge what they read.
For researchers, the gap is about study design. Skin changes build up over years, while the trials we cite here ran for weeks to a year. Many studies also measure lab markers, such as collagen in a small biopsy, rather than changes people can see or feel.
What is known
- A 2024 narrative review in Post Reproductive Health states that there are no approved effective treatments to prevent or ease skin changes caused by estrogen deficiency. It says systemic hormone therapy may help to some degree, and that other options are hypothetical because data are lacking. [1]
- A 2022 narrative review in Climacteric states that hormone therapy is not indicated for skin and hair symptoms alone. One author listed an affiliation with a cosmetics company. [2]
- A 2008 vehicle controlled biopsy study in postmenopausal women with a mean age of 75 found that two weeks of topical estradiol raised collagen in sun-protected hip skin, with no significant change in photoaged skin of the face or forearm. [3]
- A 1997 open, non randomized study enrolled 43 early postmenopausal women: 29 took systemic estrogen, with or without a progestin, and 14 served as controls. After 12 months it found no change in skin collagen or skin thickness. [4]
Why it is still open
The evidence is thin and points in different directions depending on where and how skin was measured. Some studies use hip or thigh skin that rarely sees the sun, while the face is exposed every day (see OQ-03). Follow-up is short compared with the years over which skin changes. Some of the studies, like the 1997 one, are decades old. And collagen in a biopsy is a surrogate: it does not tell us whether skin looks or feels different to the person.
Reviews also disagree in tone. One sees a possible modest benefit from hormone therapy. Another says hormone therapy is not indicated for skin alone. Neither claims a proven, lasting effect on facial skin.
What would answer it
A randomized, placebo controlled trial in women around and after menopause, with follow-up of at least one to two years, measuring facial skin with outcomes that people notice (dryness, elasticity, how skin feels) alongside lab measures. Results would need to be reported separately by age, time since menopause and sun exposure, so readers can see who the findings apply to.
Sources
1. Merzel Sabovic, et al. Treatment of menopausal skin: a narrative review of existing treatments, controversies, and future perspectives. Post Reprod Health. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1177/20533691241233440 PMID 38379168. Verified on 2026-10-12.
2. Zouboulis, et al. Skin, hair and beyond: the impact of menopause. Climacteric. 2022. https://doi.org/10.1080/13697137.2022.2050206 PMID 35377827. Verified on 2026-10-12. Note: one author affiliation with a cosmetics company.
3. Rittie, et al. Induction of collagen by estradiol: difference between sun-protected and photodamaged human skin in vivo. Arch Dermatol. 2008. https://doi.org/10.1001/archderm.144.9.1129 PMID 18794456. Verified on 2026-10-12.
4. Haapasaari, et al. Systemic therapy with estrogen or estrogen with progestin has no effect on skin collagen in postmenopausal women. Maturitas. 1997. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0378-5122(97)01128-6 PMID 9255750. Verified on 2026-10-12.
Related on MenoDerm
Status history
| Date | From | To | Reason | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (none) | open | Page created, status set | (none) |
Cite this page
MenoDerm Open Question OQ-01, version 1.0, , /open-questions/does-any-treatment-improve-menopausal-skin.
MenoDerm explains research. It does not give medical advice and is not a clinic. Talk to your own doctor about your situation. The status describes the research, not your situation.