Hormone Therapy in the Postmenopausal Woman Help
Hormone Therapy in the Postmenopausal Woman
Instructions:-
For over 20 years, the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) study has conducted research trials to examine factors that impact risks and development of conditions that impact women such as heart disease, breast and colorectal cancer, and osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal women. Health care providers use results from these trials to develop guidelines for delivering care to patients. In your role in clinical settings, you must be familiar with these guidelines, and you must be aware that through clinical practice, guidelines frequently evolve and change. Often, what is considered a best practice today might not be a best practice in the future. For this Assignment, you compare guidelines outlined in the WHI study to current best practices for assessing and managing conditions.
By Day 7 of Week 11
To Prepare:
Review the Women’s Health Initiative article in this week’s Learning Resources. Select one disorder presented in this study.(Hormone Therapy in postmenopausal women)
Locate and select a research article that addresses current best practices for assessing and managing the disorder you selected. Be sure that the research article you select is from a reputable source.
Consider the similarities and differences between the best practices presented in the WHI study and the article you selected. Think about the potential impact of differences in best practices on women’s health.
Consider whether the best practices in the article you selected should be used in clinical practice.
To Complete:
Write a 2- to 3-page paper that addresses the following:
Describe the disorder you selected from the Women’s Health Initiative study. (Hormone Therapy in the postmenopausal woman)
Explain the current best practices for assessing and managing this disorder as suggested in the research article you selected.
Compare the best practices presented in the WHI study to the current best practices presented in the article. Explain how the differences in best practices might impact women’s health.
Explain whether you think the current best practices in the article you selected should be used in clinical practice. Support your position with evidence-based research.
Solution
Hormone Therapy in the Postmenopausal Woman
The postmenopausal period is the period following menopause. During this period, most of the bothersome symptoms a woman may have experienced before menopause steadily decreases. When a woman fails to have her period for the whole year, she is said to be in the postmenopausal period. Measuring the Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) is also another way of detecting whether one is in the postmenopausal period. The follicle stimulating hormone levels will gradually rise as the ovaries begin to “shut down.” Medication and changes in lifestyle may reduce the risk of some of the disorders associated with menopause. Because of several factors, such as low level of estrogen, postmenopausal women are at a high risk of contracting some health conditions like heart diseases. Heart disease is a disorder I which a waxy-like component, known as the plagues develop inside the arteries. The arteries are known to supply oxygen-rich blood to the heart. The deposition of the plague hinders the supply of oxygen-rich blood. Heart diseases have often caused
Best practices for assessing and managing disorder
According to the article by Neil, et al. (2011), it has been obtained that bioidentical hormone therapy is also a best practice for treating the condition. This therapy entails the compounding of plat-derived hormones that are perceived to be similar in structure to the human endogenous hormones. The pharmacists may compound these preparations as injectable solutions, suppositories, creams, gels or pills. These compounded formulations may contain dehydroepiandrosterone, testosterone, estriol, estrone and even estradiol. In this treatment method, salivary hormone level assessment is recommended as a technique of developing an individualized therapy.
Comparison: How the differences in best practices might impact women’s health.
The best practices presented in the WHI study are based on the use of estrogen and progesterone. The study recommends that for women without uterus only 0.625mg/per estrogen (in the form of Conjugated Equine Estrogen) be used. While for women with a uterus, both 0.625mg/day of estrogen and 2,5mg/day of progesterone (in the form of conjugated equine estrogen and medroxyprogesterone respectively) be used. However, the article by Neil, et al. (2011) suggests the use of compounded plant-derived hormones. Unlike in the study by WHI, Neil et al. (2011) articles do not give specifications and the quantity to be used. In the WHI study, only progesterone and estrogen are proposed while the article by Neil et al. suggests other hormones, dehydroepiandrosterone, testosterone, estriol, estrone and even estradiol, in addition to the two.
The differences in the two best practices may impact the health of women in the sense that there is a likelihood of them leading to different outcomes. For instance, the therapy proposed by Neil et al. may have additional compounds that may bring about side effects.
My take
I feel that the study by WHI offers recommendations that are both specific and comprehensive. It is not possible to claim that the use of bioidentical hormones is safe and free of side effects. Additionally, the perception that the hormones are bioidentical is still subject to debate since it has not yet been proven. The compounds in the bioidentical therapy are nor regulated, and thus, there is a possibility of them containing toxic compounds. In summary, there is a need for more research on bioidentical therapy to fill the existing gaps.
References
Goodman, N. F., Cobin, R. H., Ginzburg, S. B., Katz, I. A., & Woode, D. E. (2011). AACE Guidelines.
WHI Clinical Trial/Observational Study Locations. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/whi/ctos.htm#hrt
