Tulsa Kids SouthCrest Column – December 2008

“Is This Menopause?”

EVENT NOTICE: “Is This Menopause?” Kala Omstead, D.O. Tuesday, December 9 6:30 p.m. SouthCrest Medical Plaza 91st and Hwy. 169 Education Center, Suite 145 Call 294-DOCS to register.

 SouthCrest Family Practice Physician Discusses Menopause and Hormone Replacement Therapy

Menopause affects every woman differently. In fact, not all women experience symptoms such as hot flashes or night sweats. As unfair as it may seem, some women don’t notice anything different while going through “the change;” while other women suffer from symptoms that drastically affect their day-to-day lives. The good news is these symptoms can be treated effectively.

Please join Kala Omstead, D.O. on Tuesday, December 9, at 6:30 p.m. at the SouthCrest Medical Plaza, 91st and Hwy. 169, Education Center, Suite 145, as she talks about what happens during menopause and what treatment options are available to you. She’ll also discuss recent studies on hormone replacement therapy (HRT), including risk factors and who should use HRT.  Dr. Omstead is a family practice physician with Signature Family Medicine, located on the SouthCrest Hospital campus at 9001 S. 101st E. Avenue, Suite 370, 918-392-5640.

First of all, what exactly is menopause? Menopause is a normal condition that all women experience as they age. The term “menopause” is commonly used to describe changes a woman may experience, either just before or after she stops menstruating, marking the end of her reproductive period.

“Women are born with a certain number of hormone-producing follicles in their ovaries,” Dr. Omstead says. “As the follicles begin to deplete, their ability to produce estrogen, progesterone and testosterone lessens, causing perimenopause (the time leading up to menopause) to set in. When this happens, symptoms such as night sweats, hot flashes and irritability can start occurring.”

All Women are Different

Like the onset of menstruation, there is a wide range of when women experience menopause. “In most cases, the menstrual cycle begins anywhere from 10 to 18 years, while menopause can start when a woman is in her mid-30s, up to her early 60s,” Dr. Omstead says. “It’s important to understand that as each woman is different, so is the menopause treatment option that is best for her.”

That Was Then, This is Now

In this day and age of information overload, it is no surprise much confusion surrounds the issue of HRT. “I believe much of this confusion stems from a national study conducted in 2002 by the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) which linked HRT with cardiac risk,” Dr. Omstead says. “However, recent studies have negated the WHI findings by showing there may not be as much of a cardiac risk as once believed. It was discovered that if a woman is between the ages of 50 and 55 when she begins HRT, the risk of heart disease is minimal. Another HRT ‘plus’ that wasn’t included in the study, but is certainly worth mentioning is its effectiveness in treating menopausal symptoms and in boosting bone strength.”

On the flip side, HRT may not be an option for women who have a personal or family history of stroke, breast cancer or blood clots. However, even in such situations, a very low dose of HRT may be recommended to help ease menopausal symptoms.

“The key message is that the proper treatment for menopause varies from woman to woman,” Dr. Omstead says. “The emphasis rests on treating every woman on a case-by-case basis, not just in terms of menopause symptoms, but for all health concerns.”