Hormone Therapy Could Raise Migraine Frequency

Postmenopausal women using hormone replacement therapy had more migraine attacks and migraine days per month in a pooled review of 23,702 women.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Women’s Health

Hormone Therapy Could Raise Migraine Frequency

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Would migraine risk change whether you'd start hormone therapy after menopause?

A systematic review presented at The Menopause Society's annual meeting in San Diego links postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy to higher migraine incidence, frequency, and duration. Postmenopausal women considering or using hormone therapy may want to discuss migraine history with their physician.

Why it matters

Migraine often shifts around menopause, and hormone therapy is a common treatment decision for postmenopausal women, so an association between HRT and more frequent migraine is relevant to that conversation. The finding comes from a pooled analysis that researchers say needs further study before firm conclusions can be drawn.

This systematic review pooled data from five studies including 23,702 women and was presented at The Menopause Society's annual meeting. It found higher migraine incidence, frequency, and duration among postmenopausal women using hormone replacement therapy, though analgesic use and severity scores did not differ significantly.

The players

The Menopause Society

A professional society focused on menopause research, clinical care, and women's midlife health, which hosted the annual meeting where the study was presented.

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine

The academic medical school where lead researcher Flavia Fairbanks Ruano, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues conducted the systematic review.

Stephanie Faubion, M.D.

Medical director of The Menopause Society, who said more research is needed before drawing conclusions from the findings.

The details

Researchers led by Flavia Fairbanks Ruano, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine examined incidence, severity, frequency, duration, and fluctuations in estrogen levels across the included studies. Hormone replacement therapy supplies estrogen to the body after menopause, and estrogen levels are one factor thought to influence migraine patterns. The review's pooled estimates link HRT use with about one additional migraine attack and nearly one additional day of migraine per month.

The findings were presented at The Menopause Society's annual meeting in San Diego from October 20 to 24, 2026.
The study findings were published in an article on November 3, 2026.

Health Landscape

Hormone replacement therapy has long been used to manage menopausal symptoms, and clinicians have weighed its benefits against risks for individual patients. This systematic review adds to the research on how hormone therapy may relate to migraine, a condition that can change during the menopause transition.

If you are postmenopausal and considering or using hormone replacement therapy, it is worth raising any history of migraine or changes in headache pattern with your doctor. Tracking headache frequency and duration over time can give your clinician useful information when weighing treatment options.

The takeaway

The study suggests a possible link between hormone replacement therapy and more frequent migraine, but researchers say more evidence is needed before drawing firm conclusions. If you have migraines and are thinking about menopausal hormone therapy, bring your headache history to a conversation with your physician.