Treating menopausal symptoms
Hot flushes
Hot flushes are the hallmark symptoms of the menopause, affecting the majority of women to some degree. Flushes can continue for several years.
They can be triggered by external factors, such as alcohol, caffeine, and hot foods or beverages. They may also be stimulated by emotional upsets.
They tend to be more pronounced at night when night sweats can be so severe that sleep is disrupted. Some women have to change their night-clothes and even their sheets as they may wake up drenched in sweat.
Changes to the vagina: atrophic vaginitis, vaginal atrophy
- After the menopause, due to lack of oestrogen, the vagina becomes shorter, less elastic and dryer. These changes are referred to as 'atrophic vaginitis' or “vaginal atrophy”. Common symptoms are vaginal dryness, itching, burning, soreness of the vagina and pain during intercourse (dyspareunia).
- Changes in vaginal flora may result in more frequent bacterial of fungal vaginal infections.
- Approximately 30% of women experience vaginal symptoms during the early post-menopausal period, and up to 47% of women have them during the later post-menopausal period1.
1. NHS Direct: Health Encycopaedia - 2008 http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for women is the core of medical treatment for menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes, night sweats (vasomotor symptoms), and vaginal symptoms. It is used by millions of women worldwide to relieve the symptoms of menopause and usually does so very effectively as it partly compensates for the declining hormone levels around and after the menopause.
Ideally HRT should be used alongside a healthy lifestyle such as non-smoking, drinking alcohol in moderation, exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet and getting sufficient sunlight to maintain healthy levels of vitamin D in order to prevent osteoporosis.
Sources of hormones in HRT
Oestrogens and progestogens are the hormones most commonly employed in HRT. Many forms of HRT contain the oestrogen, 17-ß estradiol, which is identical to the natural female hormone. It is usually produced from plant material. Other oestrogens, known as conjugated equine estrogens are extracted from the urine of pregnant mares.
Natural progesterone is very poorly absorbed when taken as a tablet and therefore a number of synthetic alternatives (progestogens) have been developed. Progestogens in general act to protect the lining of the womb from over-stimulation by the hormone oestrogen.
< Previous: Symptoms of the menopause
Next: Benefits of HRT >