To the treatment with hormones for menopause also it’s known as hormonal replacement treatment. During the menopause a minor quantity of hormones produces that can cause sudden heats, dryness in the vaginal tissue and fragile bones. To relieve these problems, it’s common to prescribe to women estrogen or estrogen with progestin (another hormone). As it happens with all medicines, the treatment with hormones entails risks and benefits. Consult to your physician, nurse or pharmaceutical about the hormones use. If you decide to use hormones, use the lowest dose and take it by the shortest term that give you result.
the hormonal replacement treatment has its risks
The treatment with hormones is the most effective method that has approved the FDA to relieve the sudden sensations of heat, the night sweats and the dryness in the vaginal tissue. The hormones can reduce the probability that the bones weaken and fracture easily (osteoporosis). The hormones also can reduce the risk of having colon cancer.
this treatment (hrt) can generate
blood clots
In some women, the treatment with hormones can increase the possibility of having blood clots, heart attacks, brain hemorrhages, breast cancer and gall bladder disease. For the woman who has uterus, the estrogen increases the possibility of having endometrium cancer (cancer in the tissue that recovers the uterus). The additional use of progestin decreases such risk.
THE HORMONAL REPLACEMENT THERAPY (HRT):
The hormonal replacement therapy (HRT) tries to contribute the dose of synthetic hormones, necessary for, arrived the menopause, we will be able to avoid that the woman suffer the menopause symptoms. It’s also use to prevent the disease whose risk increases after the hormonal deficit (osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease). It’s a treatment where hormones are contributed, like estrogens and progestagens. If to the patient has been removed the uterus (hysterectomy), the treatment is done (monotherapy) only with estrogens. Also there is a combined therapy, using jointly the progesterone and the estrogens and it’s indicated in women with uterus. One of the contraindications that have found in some patients who have used this therapy is the presence of breast and ovary cancer. This hormonal treatment should complete with a balanced diet and physical exercise.
The most frequent vias of administration is the transdermic (the patches) and orally (pills). We recommend that each woman must evaluate carefully the benefits and risks they take when choose this therapy.
This therapy helps the menopausic women in the following:
- Correction of menstrual irregularities of the peri-menopause.
- Relief of the symptoms proper of the climacteric (heat flushes, sweat, insomnia).
- Prevention or treatment of the vulva and vagina atrophy: The blood circulation increases in this zone, the disturbances reduce during sexual relationships and the elasticity improves.
- Prevention of the bladder and urethra alterations, so the estrogens improve the problem of urinary incontinence during the climacteric.
- Prevention of cutaneous atrophy: The elasticity and the thickness of the skin improve as a consequence of the stimulation of the cellular division.
- Prevention and treatment of the osteoporosis to reduce the lost of the bone mass.
- Prevention of cardiovascular diseases: The studies have demonstrated that women who use the HRT run a 40% less of risk of suffer a heart attack or an angina pectoris.
This treatment affects to a 10 percent of women, with secondary effects that can last 3 – 6 months. The main effects of estrogens are: nauseas, flatulence, liquid retention, breast sensibility, diminution of the libido and fatigue. The HRT is contraindicated in women with serious diseases of the liver (hepatopathies) like cirrhosis, with record of thromboembolism, with non diagnosed vaginal hemorrhage and in patients with uterus, breast or ovary cancer.
The extended treatment with estrogenic hormonal therapy of replacement is associated to a major risk of ovary and breast cancer; also with lupus, a serious autoimmune disease. In the case of treatments with estrogens and progestagens, the risks are scarce, but also it’s a therapy relatively recent, and therefore it seems to be that there isn’t evidence of risk of ovary cancer in these women.
This therapy is not advisable for women who have family record of ovary, breast, uterine cancer or fibroids. It’s not also convenient to follow this therapy if you have had atypical hyperplasia, some disease of the liver or the gall bladder. Also you have to consider that synthetic estrogens can produce metabolic changes in the liver, accompanied of arterial hypertension, liquid retention and blood clots. The equine estrogen shouldn’t use the women with obesity, arterial hypertension, high cholesterol, varicose veins or if you smoke. The most recommendable synthetic estrogens are estropipate, estradiol, estrace, estraderm.
