Testosterone
Why is Testosterone important? Testosterone helps to maintain normal metabolic function, muscle and bone strength, urogenital (bladder and vaginal) health, mood and cognitive (brain) function. In the UK testosterone is currently indicated for low libido. What happens when Testosterone levels are low? Lowering testosterone can lead to several distressing sexual symptoms such as low sexual desire, arousal […]
Breast Cancer Risks, Myths and HRT
Unfortunately, due to a media frenzy and poorly reported women’s health initiative (WHI) study in the early 2000’s there has been a huge amount of controversy with regards to breast cancer and HRT that we just cannot shake off despite the evidence we have that there is no or very little risk depending on the […]
Systemic Transdermal Oestrogen
Transdermal oestrogen can be given as either a patch or a gel. Gels Oestrogen can be applied morning or night. Rub the gel into the outside of your upper arm (shoulder to elbow) or inside of your upper thigh. Do not apply additional creams or moisturisers to the area used for gel before applying gel […]
Vaginal Health
Oestrogen keeps your vagina healthy as a natural lubricant and also stimulates the cells in the lining of your vagina to encourage the presence of ‘good’ bacteria which protect against infection. What happens when oestrogen declines? Declining oestrogen causes the tissue lining of the vagina to thin and become dryer. We now call this genitourinary […]
Progesterone and HRT
Women who take HRT and still have their womb (uterus) are required to take a progestogen in addition to oestrogen. This is because taking oestrogen alone can cause an unhealthy thickening of the womb lining (endometrium). If this happens, there is a potential for it to develop into cancer. Taking progestogen prevents this occurring. Utrogestan […]
Hormone Replacement Therapy
HRT is a hormone treatment that includes the hormones oestrogen, often progestogen and in some cases testosterone. In this blog post, we are exploring the different types of HRT, when you should start, and associated benefits and risks. The decision to undergo HRT should be personalised, considering individual medical history, family history, and lifestyle factors. Consulting […]
Perimenopause and Menopause and Sleep: A Patient’s Guide
An estimated 13 million people in the UK1 are experiencing perimenopause or menopause. The hormonal changes can affect many aspects of health, including sleep. Knowing what to expect and understanding the symptoms and causes of different sleep problems can help, and with the proper treatment (replacing your hormones) you can get a better night’s rest! […]
Vaginal Dryness
Symptoms of vaginal dryness may appear for the first time more than 10 years after the last menstrual period or earlier in the perimenopause. Vaginal dryness tends to increase in severity with time since the menopause. Changes in the vagina microbiome can occur from declining oestrogen levels. This can lead to an increase in vaginal […]
Menopause
We are born with our lifetime’s worth of eggs and follicles in our ovaries; they are used over our lifetime and reduce in number with age until (a) we have none left, (b) we stop ovulating and (c) stop having periods. The average age of menopause is 51 in the UK. The menopause is a […]
Postmenopause
What is the post menopause? This is the time after the menopause. When a women hasn’t experienced a period for over a year, she has become post menopausal. Is it too late for treatment? There is no upper age limit on starting and taking HRT. However these are nuanced discussions you need to have with […]
