What’s New with Menopause?
by Ngozi Osuagwu, MD | September 5th, 2021
I finally completed the North American Menopause Society (NAMS) 2020 virtual annual conference titled, Reaching New Heights in Menopause Care. I had a year to complete the conference and I finished it last week. They had excellent speakers. I learned a lot during the conference but I thought I would share my top 10 lessons.
- When it comes to the management of menopausal symptoms, one size does not fit all. We have to approach each woman with personalized care.
- There is a lot of misinformation in social media regarding how to manage menopausal symptoms. Be careful where you get your information. NAMS is an excellent resource. You can go their website – menopause.org. They also have an app, MenoPro that can assist in providing options. At this time, the MenoPro app is not available on Android devices.
- Although we know that Estrogen works well for hot flushes, there are non-hormonal agents that can help with hot flushes.
- Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause or GSM for short is the preferred term to describe all the symptoms that occur around the external genitalia (vulva), vagina and bladder area.
- The most common symptom of menopause is hot flushes. Hot flushes gets better with time, however GSM gets worse with time if you do not intervene.
- For GSM, you start out with lubricants and moisturizers. If that does not work, then you can use hormones. These hormones are low dose.
- Perimenopause is associated with irregular bleeding and there is help. The hormonal intrauterine device (IUD) can be great to help with the bleeding during this time.
- You do not have to give up having sex when you are older. Dealing with sexual issues requires the two people in the relationship. Communication is key – communication with your partner and communication with your health care provider.
- You do not have to go to a compound pharmacy for bioidentical hormones. There are FDA approved bioidentical hormones.
- Wellness is the fuel for prosperity. Focus on the positive. Achieving wellness includes healthy eating, physical activity, sleep, stress management and human social interaction.
Thank you Dr. Ngozi for this invaluable information. I’m looking forward to gaining further tips and advice on menopause from the website given.
Thank you for your feedback. The goal is to make sure that we provide up to date information.
Thank you for addressing one of the subject matters women tend to not want to talk about-menopause:-). I am at the tail end now and barely have hot flushes. I have also learned that being open with your health provider is very helpful. There is light at the end of the tunnel:-)
Yes, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks for your support.