Understanding Menopause

There is a lack of collective focus regarding the recommendation of estrogen hormone therapy (ET) for postmenopausal women. For advanced practice nurses (APRN), clarification is necessary in order to inform their clients experiencing menopause of the risks and benefits of hormone therapy use. In the United States, breast cancer is the second leading cause of female death behind cardiovascular disease and its etiology is recently becoming more fully defined (Eccles, 2013). Breast cancer is exacerbated by the number of years clients use hormone therapy as well as each client’s lifestyle (Beckmann, 2014). Hormone therapy combination, dose and length of therapy as well as the client’s medical history all impact onset of malignancy, but the

The article, “Hot flashes in menopause may have genetic links”, by Catharine Paddock is relevant to our class because it addresses an important topic of women’s biology and period of time in women life. When we discussed the topic of menopause we went over the perimenopause which is the signs of women experiencing menopause like headaches. Similarly in the article Paddock explained the symptoms of hot flash and night sweats women commonly expressed during or after menopause. We learned in class about the symptoms but we did not explore further into it to understand why this occurs in the women’s biology.

Hot flashes are one of the many side effects of cancer treatment. A hot flash is defined as “a subjective sensation of heat that is associated with objective signs of cutaneous vasodilation and a subsequent drop in core temperature” (Kaplan, Mahon, Cope, Keating, Hill & Jacobson, 2011). Another description of a hot flash is a “sudden sensation of intense warmth that begins in the chest region and rises to the neck and face” (Loprinzi, Barton & Rhodes, 2001). Hot flashes are difficult to measure because they are a subjective experience. Electronic monitoring devices have been used to assess skin temperature and objectively measure hot flashes (Carpenter, 2005). Hot flashes cause discomfort and can affect a patient’s quality of life, especially when associated with night sweats, sleep disruption, and mood swings (Loprinzi, Barton & Rhodes, 2001).

Menopause is caused by a number of things, natural diminishing of reproductive hormones, hysterectomy, chemotherapy/ radiation therapy, primary ovarian insufficiency.

"Unlike other primates, [human] women tend to have a long post-reproductive life. Even before modern medicine, many women lived for 30 to 35 years after their last child was born."2 But in human females the reproductive system shuts down much more rapidly than the rest of the body. "Half of women experience menopause by the age of 50, and fertility starts to decline about two decades before that,”2 says

While these options are not as effective for some as they are others, it is important to educate and include the patient in the decision making process. According to Santen (2015), black cohosh is not recommended to treat hot flashes or any other menopause symptom. Also, studies suggest that black cohosh can stimulate breast tissue similar to estrogen and most studies revealed the same effect as placebos during study trials (Santan, Loprinzi, & Casper, 2016). I would educate my patient about this information and go over her risk factors with her. If she had history or family history of breast cancer, I would not recommend. Otherwise, I would offer this supplement is an option before going to hormone therapy. In some cases, this product may provide relief of symptoms or at least make the symptoms more tolerable for them. I would tell my patient that this product is fairly expensive, and the active ingredient can be bought in other brands that are much

A supracervical hysterectomy is a surgery to remove the top part of the uterus while leaving the cervix in place. The surgery is sometimes done with another procedure to remove the fallopian tubes and ovaries (bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy). You will no longer have menstrual periods or be able to get pregnant after this surgery.

you begin menopause. Although trying to predict the age you’ll begin menopause is tricky, there are maneuvers that help predict when one will start. For instance, smoking means earlier menopause, alcohol consumption

Estrogen and progesterone are hormones generated by the ovaries. These hormones have a variety of fundamental uses in the body of a female. Estrogen initiates thickening of the uterus wall in preparation for implantation of a fertilized ovum. Also, estrogen plays a role in the metabolism of calcium in the body. Apart from these two roles, estrogen also participates in the maintenance of cholesterol levels within the normal limits. Estrogen is also implicated in keeping the vagina healthy. Progesterone, on the other hand, acts as a regulatory substance to estrogen. Menopause is characterized by a reduction in production of these hormones. This decline in production correlates with a decline in performance of

Sweat is normally created When the body temperature rises. Once this occurs, the nervous system sends signals to the sweat glands to release salty fluid. As sweat evaporates, this fluid cools the surface of the skin and helps reduce the core body temperature. On the other hand, excessive sweating is associated with a broad range of conditions. Such conditions include but is not limited to; pregnancy, menopause, hyperthyroidism

Menopause and the risk for breast cancer are interrelated in the sense that if a woman undergoes late menopause after the age of 55 years then her risk for ovarian, breast, and uterine cancer rises. This risk is even greater if menstruation occurred early prior to 12 years of age. This can be attributed the longer exposure to estrogen and also exposure to more ovulations. Other risk factors are late age at first live birth or not having given birth.

Premature menopause has been considered as one of the crucial factors contributing to infertility. Premature menopause occurs due to progressive decrease in the number and quality of the oocytes sequestered in the primordial follicles.

·     The average age of menopause onset is 51 years old. There is no single method to

If your body gains heat at a faster rate than it can lose heat you will get hyperthermia. Fever; anaesthesia; hot conditions and hard exercise can cause this to happen.

87% of menopausal women report they have experienced hot flashes and half of them have experienced night sweats as well. Although some women still menstruate regularly they can may experience hot flashes. Hot flashes usually only transpire for about a year, some women struggle with them for up to five years on an intermittent basis. The more often a woman’s estrogen levels waver, the stronger and more frequent the hot flashes become. Changes in the hypothalamus as hormone level decline, some experts think this may be the cause of hot flashes. Women who have had their ovaries removed experience much more severe hot flashes than those whose ovaries are