Benefits Of Hormone Therapy

There comes a time when a woman progresses from their fertile stage and transitions into menopause. The hormones estrogen and progesterone decrease with the early onset into the menopausal stage.

When a woman suffers from discomforting menopause-related symptoms, the use of Hormone Therapy or Hormone Replacement Therapy, HRT in short, can help relieve the discomfort. Apart from menopause-related issues, this therapy can also treat osteoporosis. Hormone therapy can help with symptoms like vaginal dryness, urinary urgency, mood swings, sleep disturbances, and hot flashes due to the low levels of the hormone estrogen.

Experts like Dr. John Huffman in Arlington can help ascertain whether you can be a candidate for this treatment.

The hormone therapy is either an estrogen-only therapy or an estrogen and progesterone therapy. The former is highly prescribed to women who have undergone a hysterectomy, while the latter protects women with uteruses from a possibility of uterine or endometrial cancer. 

Hormone therapy or HRT can be administered primarily in two ways:

• Systemic products in gels, patches, oral medication, emulsions, injections, etc., that circulate the hormone directly into the bloodstream and reach all body parts. It has been highly effective against vaginal dryness, osteoporosis, and hot flashes.

• Non-systemic products in the form of tablets, creams, and rings directly impact a specific body part. It is effective for vaginal symptoms.

Before getting the procedure, it is essential to know women who cannot avail of this therapy as it puts them at risk. Usually, the women who have a history of heart disease, liver disease, pregnant women, breast or endometrial cancer, history of blood clots, and abnormal menstrual cycles cannot be treated with this method.

Benefits of hormone therapy:

There are several benefits to hormone therapy, and they are as follows:

• Relief from hot flashes.
• Effective against symptoms like dry and itchy skin.
• Deals with vaginal dryness to help with better vaginal function during intercourse.
• The risk of osteoporosis is decreased.
• It eliminates mood swings.
• Less chance of getting diabetes and colon cancer.
• Significantly lower death rates among women who availed of the procedure in their early fifties.

However, before considering the procedure, it is beneficial to be aware of the possible side effects of hormone therapy. The risks associated with this therapy are breast tenderness, irregular spotting, fluid retention, headaches, skin discoloration, increased breast density, etc.

In a majority of the cases, the side effects are minor, and if the symptoms pop up, your doctor can help adjust the dosage accordingly through routine checkups.