Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT)
BHRT stands for Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy, and is a therapy for women anywhere from premenopausal, where they are just starting their periods, up through perimenopausal, which is the transition into menopause. It’s also used in patients who have already hit menopause.
BHRT consists of hormones, whether it is estradiol or any of the other estrogens, progesterone, and testosterone. They are identical to what the body produces in structure. What that means is, when the body sees those hormones they react to them as if the patient is producing their own hormones. It’s somewhat of a lock and key method where the hormones are able to hit the receptor and get an exact response as the patient’s own hormones would.
Being more like what the patient would produce, the patient is going to get more of their own response. Often times if they are using the therapy they are using if for hot flashes and night sweats. Often times they may be using it for sleep benefits, to help moods or for physical features such as vaginal dryness. A lot of times, the patients may be experiencing low libido or low sex drive, so this will also help them in that area as well.
We encourage any patient who is experiencing hormonal imbalances to either contact their physician or contact the pharmacy, we have a great team of pharmacists who are ready to answer any questions that they may have and direct them to what they need to do next in the process.