Types of Hormone Replacement Therapy
Hormone replacement therapy, also known as menopausal hormone therapy, hormone therapy or estrogen replacement therapy, uses female hormones estrogen and progesterone to treat common menopause and aging symptoms. Often, doctors prescribe it during or after menopause.
Once your menstruation stops, the hormone levels fall, causing uncomfortable symptoms like vaginal dryness and hot flashes and other times conditions like osteoporosis. The hormone replacement therapy helps in replacing the hormones that your body can no longer produce. The HRT is the most effective treatment for symptoms of menopause.
The Importance of Estrogen
When you think of estrogen, most likely you think about pregnancy. In women who are of child-bearing age, estrogen gets the uterus ready to receive the fertilized egg. It has other functions as well–it controls how your body uses calcium, which helps in bone strengthening, and raises the good cholesterol levels in the blood.
When is the Right Time to Tale Progesterone
If you have your womb, it is not advisable to take estrogen without progesterone as it grows your cancer of the endometrium risk. The fact that the endometrium cells are no longer leaving your body during your period, they may build up in the womb and lead to cancer. The work of progesterone is reducing that risk by thickening the lining.
The Types of Hormone Replacement Therapy
Doctors recommend a low dose of estrogen for women who have had a hysterectomy, the surgical removal of the uterus. There are many forms of the estrogen hormone with the most common being the patch and the pill, but there are also other forms available such as the vaginal ring, gel or spray.
Estrogen/Progesterone/Progestin Therapy
This mostly called the combination therapy as it combines doses of estrogen and progestin. This treatment method is meant for women who still have their uterus.
Women who have acute to severe menopausal symptoms, as well as those with a family history of osteoporosis, are ideal candidates for hormone replacement therapy.On the contrary, those with breast cancer, liver disease, heart disease, or a history of blood clots as well as those without menopausal symptoms should not go for the HRT.
HRT Regimes
There are various treatment regimes of HRT available depending on whether you are still in the early stages of the menopause or have had menopausal symptoms for some time. The common regimes are the Cyclical or Sequential and the Continuous HRT.
The sequential HRT is for women using the combined HRT who have the menopausal symptoms but are still having their periods. They are two types; the monthly HRT for women with regular periods and Three-monthly HRT for those with the irregular periods.
Continuous Combined HRT is recommended for women who are post-menopausal–not having a period for a year. It is the continued use of estrogen and progesterone every day without a break.
What Has Changed Recently With Programs?
If You Think You Understand Therapies, Then This Might Change Your Mind