Who Can Receive Hormone Replacement Therapy?

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If the hot flashes, joint pains, mood swings, and other symptoms of menopause have you feeling down, there may be treatment options available that could both alleviate your physical troubles and improve your emotional state. Through hormone replacement therapy, you could address the root cause of your symptoms — the loss of hormone production brought on by advanced age — and feel more like your younger self after just a few treatments.

However, just because HRT is commonly used to lessen the impact of menopause does not mean that is its only application. During a private consultation, Dr. Edward Jacobson could go over in detail who can receive hormone replacement therapy and help determine whether it might be helpful in your situation.

HRT Treatments Could Help both Women and Men

Estrogen is not the only hormone that HRT treatments could help replace if the body does not naturally produce enough to maintain biochemical balance. For example, both estrogen and progesterone treatments may be helpful for women suffering from menopause or from certain health conditions, particularly those experiencing symptoms that impact sexual functioning and health.

Conversely, while andropause in older men is generally not as severe as menopause in women, the accompanying loss of testosterone can have numerous negative effects on a man’s health and wellbeing, including problems with sexual function, weight gain, loss of muscle mass, and hair loss. Accordingly, testosterone replacement therapy may be a good treatment option for any man dealing with low T levels.

Finally, both younger women and men could receive bioidentical hormone replacement therapy to address medical conditions that result in a hormonal imbalance, such as hypothyroidism. A physician could discuss on a case-by-case basis with patients what options may be appropriate for their unique needs.

Is There Anyone Who Should Not Receive HRT?

While hormone replacement therapy is generally a safe treatment option, especially if a patient receives bioidentical rather than synthetic hormones, there are certain contraindications that might make HRT treatments unsafe for some people. Anyone who has a history of smoking, heart disease, liver disease, or uterine or breast cancer should speak with their doctor about whether it would be safe for them to seek hormone replacement therapy.

Additionally, recent studies have suggested a correlation between certain types of synthetic hormone replacement therapy treatments and the development of medical conditions like stroke, heart disease, breast cancer, and blood clots. In particular, individuals who started treatment after they reached the age of 60, or 10 years after they first entered menopause, were found to be more at risk for these kinds of side effects than younger patients. Therefore, a conversation with a medical professional could help establish whether bioidentical HRT is safe for those who meet these criteria.

Determining whether You Should Seek Hormone Replacement Therapy

Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy is a custom-tailored treatment option. This means each patient could expect a personalized starting dose, treatment period, type of hormone, and method of treatment. To provide this highly personalized care, an initial consultation and thorough examination is a necessary first step before receiving bioidentical HRT treatments. Get in touch with Dr. Edward Jacobson to schedule your first meeting.