Bio-Identical Hormones

Many of our patients wish to ease the transition of menopause with low-dose Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). HRT is way for a woman to replace the sex hormones estrogen, progesterone & testosterone when her ovaries stop producing them naturally at menopause or when the ovaries need to be removed surgically.

Several years ago negative news and media hype led women to search for alternatives to traditional HRT. As a result, there has been increasing interest in treatment options with bioidentical hormones.

Bioidentical hormones have exactly the same biologic make-up as the hormones we make in our own bodies. Women’s ovaries produce 3 estrogens (estradiol, estriol, and estrone), progesterone, and testosterone.

Bioidentical hormones can now be routinely obtained at any compounding pharmacy. Compounding pharmacies are pharmacies that are not associated with large, national, retail chains. A benefit of going this route is that your hormone dosage can be customized to your individual needs by the compounding pharmacist once you and your doctor go over your symptoms together.

Through compounding pharmacies, women can get Estradiol, Triest or Biest. Triest contains estradiol, estriol, & estrone, while Biest contains both estriol and estradiol. Also available at these specialized pharmacies are micronized testosterone, which is the bioidentical alternative to meythyl testoserone. Natural progesterone is also available at the compounding pharmacy.

For patients that want to use their insurance co-pay, there are some traditional prescription brands that also use bioidentical estradiol. Currently, these are Estrace, Femring, Vivelle Patch, Climara Patch, Menostar, Estrogel, and Estrasorb Cream. The one brand that contains natural progesterone is Prometrium.

If this type of HRT interests you, speak to your Contemporary Women’s Care gynecologist.

Medical Disclaimer: The information provided in the Contemporary Women’s Care website should be relied upon for medical education purposes only. It is not intended to replace the independent judgment of a health care provider. The appropriateness of a course of treatment for a patient may vary from the medical information provided herein due to individual conditions and/or complications.