Women's Health

If a woman is at risk of heart disease because of family history or a risky cholesterol pattern, Dr. Notelovitz says, he probably would put her on estrogen for the rest of her life. The leading form of estrogen is Premarin, extracted from the urine of pregnant mares. More recently, doctors have prescribed a plastic bandage-type patch, usually affixed to the buttocks or abdomen. It delivers a synthetic estrogen through the skin. The patch is changed twice weekly, and so is its location, if a skin rash occurs.
When estrogen is taken in pill form, I its level in the blood rises after the pill is taken, then falls as the day passes. But with the patch, a steady estrogen level is maintained, usually causing fewer side I effects.
Valene Crumpley, 55, a registered nurse in Salt Lake City, had her ovaries surgically removed at 37. Ensuing hot I flashes were not relieved by estrogen pills. I She has used the patch since its introduction 6 years ago. As a result, she says, she has “no hot flashes at all.”
In 1966, when Dr. Robert A. Wilson I advocated estrogen therapy in his book Feminine Forever, most doctors pooh-poohed his ideas, but some researchers took them up. Now it’s the treatment of choice for most menopausal women.
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WOMEN’S HEALTH