Hormone Therapy

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved dozens of hormone therapy products for men and women, including estrogen, progesterone, testosterone, and related compounds. These products have been reviewed for safety and efficacy and are indicated for treatment of symptoms resulting from hormonal changes associated with menopause or other endocrine-based disorders. In recent decades, an increasing number of health care providers and patients have turned to custom-formulated, or compounded, drug preparations as an alternative to FDA-approved drug products for hormone-related health concerns. These compounded hormone preparations are often marketed as "bioidentical" or "natural" and are commonly referred to as compounded bioidentical hormone therapy (cBHT). In light of the fast-growing popularity of cBHT preparations, the clinical utility of these compounded preparations is a substantial public health concern for various stakeholders, including medical practitioners, patients, health advocacy organizations, and federal and state public health agencies. This report examines the clinical utility and uses of cBHT drug preparations and reviews the available evidence that would support marketing claims of the safety and effectiveness of cBHT preparations. It also assesses whether the available evidence suggests that these preparations have clinical utility and safety profiles warranting their clinical use and identifies patient populations that might benefit from cBHT preparations in lieu of FDA-approved BHT.

Hormone Therapy: A Clinical Handbook provides a comprehensive overview on hormone replacement therapy, with a range of key features that differentiate it from other titles on the topic. This concise, handy title presents an interdisciplinary approach to the subject, acknowledging that sex hormones affect more than reproductive organs and hot flushes for a deeper understanding of how hormones function. The authors provide a breadth and depth of practical prescribing experience, including many helpful tables and algorithms as well as directions for prescribing hormone therapy in the most effective and safest ways possible. Targeted and easy to read, Hormone Therapy: A Clinical Handbook offers all clinicians the state-of-the-art information they need to prescribe hormone therapy and hormone replacement therapy.

A review of both the potential hazards and benefits of hormone therapy after menopause.

This is a high-level, clinical reference by world-class specialists on the efficacy of hormone replacement therapy for the primary prevention of cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women. Specific chapters cover pulsed estrogen therapy with Aerodiol and cardiovascular risk assessment in postmenopausal hormone replacement therapies such as Livial (tibolone). This volume is based on the formal presentations and subsequent discussions that took place at the International Menopause Society specially convened Expert Workshop on Hormone Replacement Therapy and Cardiovascular Disease, London, UK, October 13-16, 2000.

An information guide to information on the subject of menopause.

A compelling defense of hormone replacement therapy, exposing the faulty science behind its fall from prominence and empowering women to make informed decisions about their health. For years, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was hailed as a miracle. Study after study showed that HRT, if initiated at the onset of menopause, could ease symptoms ranging from hot flashes to memory loss; reduce the risk of heart disease, Alzheimer's, osteoporosis, and some cancers; and even extend a woman's overall life expectancy. But when a large study by the Women's Health Initiative announced results showing an uptick in breast cancer among women taking HRT, the winds shifted abruptly, and HRT, officially deemed a carcinogen, was abandoned. Now, sixteen years after HRT was left for dead, Dr. Bluming, a medical oncologist, and Dr. Tavris, a social psychologist, track its strange history and present a compelling case for its resurrection. They investigate what led the public -- and much of the medical establishment -- to accept the Women's Health Initiative's often exaggerated claims, while also providing a fuller picture of the science that supports HRT. A sobering and revelatory read, Estrogen Matters sets the record straight on this beneficial treatment and provides an empowering path to wellness for women everywhere.