Menopause

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With a number of clinical studies now completed, the launch of drospirenone/ethinyl estradiol (Yasmin®) in the United States and Europe is expected in the near future. An international panel of physicians involved with the development of drospirenone/ethinyl estradiol recently described the potential benefits of the new oral contraceptive (OC) to clinicians attending an industry-sponsored symposium held during the XVI FIGO World Congress of Gynecology and Obstetrics.

There has been an explosion of hormone replacement therapy research over the past few years. The task of wading through the data to determine what is best for a particular patient, however, can be daunting at best and confusing at worst, said Dr. Karen Carlson, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, to delegates at the Pri-Med East in Boston.

Breast cancer is a growing concern among premenopausal women. With an emphasis on this patient population, this article discusses the known risk factors for breast cancer; models for quantitative risk assessment; and strategies for modifying breast cancer risk, including screening mammography, prophylactic mastectomy, and primary pharmacologic prevention.

A report just published in the Journal of the American Medical Association confirmed previous studies which found that women who take hormone replacement therapy (HRT) may develop denser breast tissue, which in turn may make it more difficult to detect breast cancer through mammography.

Like the proverbial elephant, osteoporosis has been described in ways that vary according to the scientific orientation of the describer. It has been defined clinically as the presence of fracture; biomechanically as decreased bone strength; radiographically as osteopenia; histomorphometrically as reduced bone matrix per unit of bone volume; and epidemiologically as increased fracture risk.

Perhaps the principal reason male menopause has never been in the public spotlight is because men who experience the characteristic decline in virility during middle age are reluctant or even unwilling to acknowledge the condition.

This is adapted from an interview with Dr. Howard Glazer, who has developed a treatment for this condition using a form of biofeedback. This initial interview, covers the history of the disease, as well as Dr. Glazer's background.