Menopause specialist Dr Mary Claire Haver has been appointed as the first chief agewell officer at virtual care clinic Midi Health.

In the role, Dr Haver will work with Midi’s clinical team to develop the AgeWell platform, described as a proactive health model that integrates perimenopause and menopausal care with metabolic health, bone density, brain health and cardiovascular risk assessment.

The platform aims to provide preventative care targeting what the company describes as the primary drivers of female mortality and disability: heart disease, bone loss and cognitive decline.

Joanna Strober, chief executive and co-founder of Midi Health, said: “Longevity care has historically ignored women’s biology, especially during the critical windows of midlife and menopause.

“At Midi Health, we are committed to extending healthspan, not just lifespan, and making that care accessible to millions of women as a core pillar of their health.

“By collaborating with Dr Haver, we are ensuring women continue to have access to care designed for their bodies, their hormones, and their real lives.”

Dr Haver is board-certified in obstetrics and gynaecology, a Menopause Society certified practitioner, a certified culinary medicine specialist and an adjunct associate professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at The University of Texas Medical Branch.

After a career in academic medicine, Dr Haver founded The Pause Life, described as a science and education-based resource for women navigating perimenopause and the menopause transition.

Through her books, unPaused podcast and digital platform, she has provided education on midlife health.

Dr Mary Claire Haver said: “I have spent my career advocating for women to receive the science-backed, no-nonsense guidance they deserve.

“I chose to partner with Midi Health because they are the only platform with the scale and medical rigour to deliver the kind of care women deserve, regardless of their zip codes.

“Together, we are setting a new standard for proactive, preventative care that meaningfully extends both lifespan and healthspan for women.”

Transdermal HRT best protects bone density in women with functional hypothalamic amenorrhoea, a condition that stops periods, a review of trials has found.

The meta-analysis pooled randomised clinical trials involving 692 participants and found transdermal hormone replacement therapy and teriparatide increased bone mineral density by between 2 and 13 per cent.

Functional hypothalamic amenorrhoea can follow anorexia or intense exercise. Bone mineral density measures bone strength and the amount of mineral in bone.

Around half of women with the condition have low bone mineral density, compared with about 1 per cent of healthy women, and their fracture risk is up to seven times higher.

The research was conducted by scientists at Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.

Professor Alexander Comninos, senior author of the study and consultant endocrinologist at the trust, said: “Bone density is lost very rapidly in FHA and so addressing bone health early is very important to reduce the lifelong risk of fractures.

“Our study provides much needed comparisons of all the available treatments from all available studies.

“Clearly the best treatment is to restore normal menstrual cycles and therefore oestrogen levels through various psychological, nutritional or exercise interventions – but that is not always possible.

“The foundation for bone health is good calcium and vitamin D intake (through diet and/or supplements) but we have additional treatments that are more effective.”

When FHA is diagnosed, clinicians first try to restore periods through lifestyle measures, including psychological and dietary support, but these can fail. Guidelines then recommend giving oestrogen, though the best form was unclear.

The team reviewed all prior randomised trials comparing therapies, including oral and transdermal oestrogen, and also assessed teriparatide, a prescription bone-building drug used for severe osteoporosis.

They found no significant benefit for oral contraceptive pills or oral hormone therapy.

A recent UK audit reported that about a quarter of women with anorexia-related FHA are prescribed the oral contraceptive pill for bone loss; the study suggests using transdermal therapy instead.

Comninos said: “Our goal is simple: to help women receive the right treatment sooner and to protect their bone health in the long-term.

“We hope this study provides clinicians with better evidence to choose transdermal oestrogen when prescribing oestrogen and so inform future practice guidelines.

“Right now, millions of women with FHA may not be receiving the best treatments for their bone health.”