Hormone Replacement Therapy Informed Consent:

In the historical period it was commonly held that estrogen had two principal benefits to postmenopausal women: 1) To alleviate the constitutional symptoms related to the climacteric such as vasomotor symptoms (hot flushes), night sweats, somnolence, and vaginal dryness; and, 2.) To work in concert with weight-bearing exercise and diet replete with calcium to decrease or minimize their role in bone mineral density loss. Biphosphonates have been available for over a decade and are now used to slow or reverse bone mineral density depletion. It is currently well established that estrogen has little or no value in maintaining bone density—its sole value is treatment of menopausal symptoms. This discussion covers various alternative treatments for hot flushes associated with menopause.