Learn about the different hormones used in hormone replacement therapy (HRT), the different types of HRT, and how you can take it. If you still have a uterus and are taking estrogen, you'll also need to take a progestogen. Your healthcare professional can help you choose the best way to take these hormones based on what works for you and has the least side effects. Then there are the patches, creams, liquids, rings, injections and pills.
Women often share stories about how HRT helps them manage menopause, but HRT comes with risks. The best and safest recommendation comes from a doctor trained to prescribe a personalized combination of therapies. Danielle Staecker, obstetrician and gynecologist at the University of Kansas Health System, offers these 15 questions that every woman must answer to better decide if she is a candidate for hormone replacement therapy. Staecker recommends sharing the answers to your questionnaire with your doctor or calling his office at (91)) 588-1227 to schedule an appointment.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is not a single treatment for all treatments; the type and dose given will vary depending on your needs. There are many different combinations available, which can be taken in a variety of ways: oral tablets, skin patches (such as band-aids), gels or sprays. The optimal type of hormone replacement therapy is the same as that of the body: the hormones are the same as those that occur naturally in the body. If you started taking sequential hormone replacement therapy during perimenopause, your doctor may I recommend that you switch to continuous combined hormone replacement therapy after menopause.
One of the easiest and most common ways to take HRT (either in combination or with estrogen alone) is in tablet form. Hormone therapy isn't recommended if you're over 60 and haven't had a menstrual period in more than 10 years. Some of the risks of hormonal hormone therapy, such as blood clots, are greater with tablets than with patches, gel, or spray (although the overall risk is still small). If there's no medical reason why HRT isn't right for you, it's important to speak up and, if necessary, ask for one second opinion.
The world of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is full of all kinds of confusing acronyms such as ET (estrogen therapy), ERT (estrogen replacement therapy), EPT (estrogen plus progestogen), and HT (hormone therapy), which can include ET and EPT. People over 60 who start hormone replacement therapy have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and dementia, which is why hormone replacement therapy is not usually recommended because the risks outweigh the benefits. How you take HRT depends on different factors, such as if you had a hysterectomy, if you're in the early stages of menopause and you're still having periods (perimenopause), or if you haven't had a period for more than 1 year (postmenopause). The use of patches can also help avoid some side effects of hormone therapy, such as indigestion, and, unlike tablets, they do not increase the risk of formation of blood clots.
If you still have a womb (uterus), it's important to be prescribed a progestogen along with estrogen for HRT. In general, the best thing you can do when talking to your doctor about menopause is to clearly state the reasons why you would like to make that decision, explain what information led you to make this decision and know what the associated risks may be, but that's always what you've decided to do. In general, no woman is too old to start taking hormone therapy, and even if it's been many years since menopause, you should be able to keep taking it. Your doctor may want to do blood tests to check your hormone levels, but this isn't usually necessary, as they can vary depending on the time.
When started before a woman reaches menopause (during the transition to perimenopause), HRT reduces the risk of this fuel change and can halve a woman's risk of Alzheimer's disease. Most doctors don't recommend long-term vaginal estrogen therapy for people who still have a uterus, as it can increase the risk of endometrial cancer. It's important to consider, together with your doctor or other health professional, your age, your medical history and your general health condition when deciding what type of hormone therapy to try.
