BIOIDENTICAL PELLET THERAPY

WHY CHOOSE BIOIDENTICAL PELLETS?

Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) helps women navigate menopause. BHRT involves the administration of synthetic or bioidentical hormones to supplement and/or replace the natural hormones that the body is not adequately producing.

Although bioidentical hormone pellets are not covered by medical insurance, they are gaining popularity because they are the GOLD STANDARD FOR HRT. The small, bioidentical pellets are implanted under the skin in the buttocks during a quick in-office procedure. The pellet doses are individualized to each woman’s symptoms and her lab results. Pellets provide a slow release of estrogen and testosterone over an extended period – usually lasting 4-5 months. This means you don’t have to remember to take a pill or apply a cream every day AND your hormone levels stay stable. How often they need to be replaced depends on multiple factors including: the speed of your metabolism, your body fat composition, and how you feel.

Dr. Shehata specializes in hormone replacement therapy with pellets because they are both the most effective and the easiest way to eliminate those bothersome side effects of menopause.

SOME OF THE ATTRIBUTES OF THE BIOIDENTICAL HORMONE OPTIONS ARE:

• Created to look just like our human hormones
• Have potentially less side effects and less risk than synthetic hormones because our body uses them in the same way as our natural hormones
• Use FDA-approved ingredients, but are sometimes administered in an off-label way (NOT FDA cleared)

WHO QUALIFIES FOR BHRT?

While BHRT offers numerous benefits, not everyone is able to undergo hormone replacement therapy. In order to make sure BHRT is right for you, we recommend scheduling a hormone replacement consult so you can discuss your symptoms and your medical history in detail with our provider. To determine if you qualify for HRT and which method will fit your lifestyle, call our office at (951) 600-7066

BHRT CANNOT BE USED IF YOU HAVE:

• A history of heart attack or significant cardiac disease
• A heart arrhythmia (Afib) on anticoagulation
• Liver disease
• An undiagnosed breast mass
• Active cancer
• A history of hormone-dependent breast cancer
• A history of ovarian cancer or advanced-stage uterine cancer
• A history of an unprovoked blood clot, pulmonary embolism, or stroke
• Thrombophilia (Factor V Liden, Antiphospholipid syndrome, etc.)

WHAT TYPES OF HORMONES DOES BHRT REPLACE?

The main hormones in the human body are estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone. All three can be replaced using BHRT.

· Estrogen is the most essential hormone in the female body and estrogen BHRT has many health benefits associated with its use. Estrogen regulates everything from metabolism to body temperature (stops hot flashes and night sweats) to memory to mood. It is essential for women looking and feeling young and it contributes greatly to a woman’s overall sense of well-being.

· Testosterone is not an FDA-approved hormone for women. However, it is very beneficial for women. When testosterone is low, it causes most of the undesired postmenopausal symptoms women complain about. For instance, testosterone BHRT can significantly improve sexual desire; sexual arousal; sexual satisfaction; energy levels; concentration and memory; and overall muscle mass. It also helps to relieve joint aches and stop the abdominal fat weight gain commonly seen after menopause. Additionally, the female body converts extra testosterone into estrogen in the ovaries, which means replacing testosterone naturally boosts estrogen levels at the same time! Risks of testosterone include: male-pattern hair growth, acne, voice changes, hair loss, irritability, anxiety, an enlarged clitoris (clitoromegaly), and an increase in red blood cells (erythrocytosis). Although, it is not known if testosterone increases the risk of breast cancer or GYN cancers (ovarian, uterine, etc.), newer studies show it may be protective against female cancers.

·  Progesterone is traditionally only replaced in women who have not undergone a hysterectomy to protect the uterus from cancer when estrogen HRT is prescribed. However, progesterone itself is very important for sleep quality - it helps women fall asleep faster and sleep better when taken orally at night. It also helps to calm the mind, which means it reduces feeling of anxiety and help you “shut your brain off.”

HOW ARE HORMONES REPLACED AFTER MENOPAUSE?

Dr. Shehata specializes in hormone replacement therapy with pellets to maximize your BHRT benefits. This entails inserting pellets in the buttocks for a long-lasting, steady dose of hormones. These need to be replaced every 3-4 months, depending on  the severity of symptoms and the patient’s metabolism. If you are interested in BHRT, call our office at (951) 600-7066.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF BIOIDENTICAL PELLETS?

The list of benefits of BHRT is constantly growing. BHRT is proven to:

• Decrease hot flash frequency and severity
• Reduce all-cause mortality
• Improve sexual desire and arousal
• Improve skin tone and slows the progression of fine lines and wrinkles
• Improve sleep by helping you to fall asleep and stay asleep
• Improve mood and reduces irritability
• Decrease the risk of depression
• Reduce the chance of developing dementia
• Slow the progression of atherosclerosis (plaque formation in the blood)
• Decrease the chance of developing heart disease or having a heart attack
• Decrease the chance of having a stroke
• Decrease the risk of diabetes
• Decrease the risk of eye disease
• Reduce postmenopausal weight gain, especially abdominal fat
• Slow the loss of muscle mass
• Slow bone loss to lower risk of osteoporosis and fractures by greater than 30%
• Relax the blood vessels and decreases the chance of elevated blood pressure

WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF BHRT?

The main risks associated with hormone replacement therapy are fluid retention, breast tenderness, acne, hair growth, and changes in mood and sleep patterns. More serious complications include allergic reactions, infection at a pellet insertion site, or extrusion of a pellet.

Risks seen when taking synthetic oral estrogen include an increased risk of blood clots, strokes, heart attacks, and gallbladder disease. These risks have not been seen with other routes of estrogen replacement. Certain types of synthetic progesterone may also increase the risk of blood clots, strokes, and heart attacks when taken orally. The risk of testosterone replacement therapy causing blood clots, strokes, heart attacks, and cancer is unknown.

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There is also an increased risk of breast cancer WITHOUT an increased risk in death from breast cancer for women taking synthetic estrogen with a synthetic progesterone HRT. This risk is no different than the increased risk experienced by someone who is overweight, drinks alcohol multiple times a week, or works in a hospital and walks by the radiology department daily. Additionally, this risk was NOT found in studies when BHRT estrogen and progesterone hormone replacement options were used together. In fact, newer studies are showing both bioidentical estrogen and progesterone may actually be protective for many of the female cancers, as well as for dementia, heart disease, diabetes, eye disease, and osteoporosis.