Human Reproduction, Vol. 19, No. 1, 210-213,
January 2004
© 2004 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology
Efficacy of pulsed estrogen therapy in relatively younger patients with surgically induced menopause
1 Zübeyde Hn. Women’s Hospital, Ankara, 2 Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Gazi University, Ankara and 3 Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Ankara Research and Training Hospital, Ankara, Turkey
4 To whom correspondence should be addressed at: Hosdere cad. Örgü sok. As apt. 2/15, Ayranci, Ankara, Turkey. e-mail: Narter{at}turk.net
BACKGROUND: Pulsed estrogen therapy is a new approach in estrogen replacement therapy. We carried out a prospective study to evaluate the efficacy of pulsed estrogen therapy in relatively younger patients with surgically induced menopause. METHODS: Patients (n = 138) <45 years old and suffering from severe vasomotor symptoms secondary to surgically induced menopause were included in the study. After the initiation of pulsed estrogen therapy (300 µg/day), the patients were re-evaluated every 4 weeks. The dose was increased at each follow-up, if necessary (to a maximum of 600 µg/day). The patients who preferred another method after the first 12 weeks were prescribed oral conjugated estrogen (0.625 mg/day) and at the end of the second 12 weeks their satisfaction levels were assessed. RESULTS: At the end of the first 12 weeks, 26 patients were completely satisfied (18.8%) and 47 were moderately satisfied (34.1%), whereas 65 concluded that the pulsed estrogen therapy they received was ineffective (47.1%). At the end of the second 12 weeks, all the patients were completely satisfied. CONCLUSION: Pulsed estrogen therapy for 12 weeks reduced the frequency of hot flushes in relatively younger patients with surgically induced menopause; however, 81.2% of patients were not completely satisfied at the end of this period.
Key words: menopause/pulsed estrogen therapy/surgically induced menopause