Hormone Replacement Therapy

Women often consider hormone replacement therapy during menopause, but men may also struggle with low hormones as they get older. At Harlandale Clinic in San Antonio, Texas, Melhem Dandan, MD, FACOG, FAAFP, offers comprehensive care for women and men who may need hormone replacement therapy to ease symptoms of a low sex drive, muscle weakness, weight gain, sleep disturbances, mood shifts and more. To schedule an appointment, call the office or use online booking today!

Why do women need hormone replacement therapy?

Your hormone levels can fall for many reasons, including nutritional deficiencies, stress, autoimmune diseases, and pituitary gland disorders. Many women need hormone replacement therapy when they go through menopause.

Your hormone levels begin fluctuating in the years before menopause, a time called perimenopause. You reach menopause when estrogen production drops to extremely low levels, and you stop having periods. You’re officially in menopause when you don’t have a period for 12 consecutive months.

What women’s symptoms improve with hormone replacement therapy?

Hot flashes and night sweats can be severe for many women. And for half of them, these symptoms last more than four years after their last menstrual period.

Estrogen regulates many areas of your body. As a result, menopause causes other symptoms and health problems. You may experience:

• Vaginal dryness
• Loss of sex drive
• Pain during intercourse
• Urinary incontinence
• Memory problems
• Bone loss (osteoporosis)
• Dry skin
• Hair loss
• Insomnia
• Weight gain
• Depression

Hormone replacement therapy can relieve your menopausal symptoms and prevent chronic conditions such as urinary incontinence and osteoporosis.

Do men ever need hormone replacement therapy?

Men need hormone replacement therapy when their testosterone levels fall too low. Let us nick-name it “MANopause.” This can happen if their testes don’t produce enough due to a health condition. However, aging also has an impact. Men’s testosterone levels fall by 1%-2% every year after about the age of 30.

What type of hormone replacement therapy will I need?

The Harlandale Clinic team begins by running blood tests to determine your exact hormone levels. For the next step, they discuss your treatment options:

Bioidentical hormone pellets

Bioidentical hormones have the same chemical structure as the hormones produced by your body. The Harlandale Clinic team uses BioSanaID®, a company that customizes your dose of hormones, creating hormone pellets that go under your skin.

Pellets gradually release a steady dose of hormones, ensuring your blood levels return to normal and remain stable. They also last several months, and your provider inserts a new pellet.

Conventional hormone replacement

You can also restore hormone levels using conventional medications in numerous forms, including injections, tablets, skin patches, and vaginal creams. Your provider recommends the best type for your symptoms and needs.

You don’t need to struggle with menopause symptoms. Call Harlandale Clinic or book an appointment online today to learn more about hormone replacement therapy.