Androgens and the Postmenopausal Woman

T HE PREDOMINANT emphasis in the study of hormones in post-menopausal women has been accorded to estrogens and progestins, with lesser attention being given to androgens and the issue of androgen replacement. This is perhaps because androgens are traditionally thought of as male hormones, and the impact of excessive androgen activity in women, for example as in hirsutism, receives more attention than the activity of androgens in normal female physiology and the sequelae of androgen deficiency. There is an increasing awareness of the significant activity of endogenous androgens in women. Women with androgen deficiency may experience a variety of physical symptoms secondary to their androgen depletion as well as psychological changes that affect their quality of life (1).