By now most of you are probably aware that last Monday, the FDA made a rather large announcement removing the black box warning from the labels of menopausal hormone therapy products, both local low-dose vaginal estrogen as well as systemic hormones. This was instituted in 2003 shortly after the Women’s Health Initiative news broke. This is a welcomed action. For the last twenty-three years, there has been stigma and fear, not only among patients who may have been excellent candidates for horm...
The latest on HRT and Breast Cancer Reduction from Dr Steven R. Goldstein, a Menopause Specialist in NYC. You would have to be living under a rock not to realize that there has been an explosion in interest in the menopausal transition. The membership in the Menopause Society (previously known as NAMS: North American Menopause Society) in two years has gone from 2,000 to 7,600. There is a tremendous amount of information on the internet and social media which, fortunately, has raised awarenes...
Dr Steven R. Goldstein, a Perimenopause Specialist NYC comments on the increasing use of HRT for Perimenopause. Is HRT good for Perimenopause? Simply giving traditional hormone replacement therapy such as estrogen patches and progesterone pills, or progesterone IUDs (as many nurse practitioners, physician assistants, women’s health internists who are new to this field are doing) may relieve hot flashes and night sweats, but can often exacerbate abnormalities in bleeding and does nothing for ot...
Dr Steven R. Goldstein is one of the world's top experts on the science of Perimenopause, one of America's leading Gynecologists and a tenured Professor at New York . He is a nationally recognized Menopause expert and a tenured Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, New York University School of Medicine. A Perimenopause Specialist in NYC, Dr Goldstein offers some helpful information on the topic of Perimenopause, specifically bleeding and spotting. Much is said about Menopause, but less abo...
Bone Health is more than just Osteoporosis In my office almost all women are cognizant of breast health, have a great fear of breast cancer, and for the most part are attuned to the importance of competent periodic breast imaging… the key to earliest detection. The goal is not to have a better bone density score on a Dexa test at age 82, the goal is to not break a hip at age 82 Bone health IS more than just osteoporosis. My hope is to get these same patients to be just as concerned about ...
To my patients, I am writing this email blast from Lisbon, Portugal where the 18th World Congress of the International Menopause Society has just concluded. As many of you know, I have been the president of this society for the last two years and this meeting was the culmination of that term. There were over 1,700 healthcare providers from 76 countries, 183 invited speakers with dozens of scientific sessions, debates, “meet the expert” sessions, and over 200 oral or poster communications. I...
To my patients, In a recent Sunday New York Times there was an article entitled, “Why do we dread menopause” by a professor named Susan Mattern from the University of Georgia. In the article "why do we dread menopause" she highlights that if you Google search “menopause and…” you come up with a whole assortment of very negative symptoms like weight gain, depression, hair loss, etc. She goes on to state that such a bleak view of menopause is unique to only modern cultures. S...
Menopausal changes that don't have to be In last Tuesday's Science Times there was an article entitled, "Menopausal vagina monologues." It was an excellent article talking about the fact that without any estrogen in menopause the vagina becomes atrophic. It loses blood supply and elasticity. It loses its normal pH (acid/base balance) because it cannot support the normal predominant bacteria called lactobacillus that feasts on glycogen and produces lactic acid, thus lowering the pH. Studies have...
Maintaining Bone Health In today's New York Times Science Section, there is an excellent article by Jane Brody entitled, "Fear of Drugs' Hazards may Put Bones at Risk." She reiterates a problem that I have seen evolving in clinical practice over the last several years. As the reimbursement for performing bone density tests had gotten so low that many facilities (including ours) could not stay open without losing money, the number of bone density tests being ordered nationwide has declined sharp...
In yesterday's New York Times Science section, there was an extremely interesting article entitled, "Researchers Track an Unlikely Culprit in Weight Gain." It has been known for quite some time that estrogen promotes lean body mass. At menopause, women no longer make estrogen and many patients experience the upsetting phenomenon of developing redistribution of weight to the abdomen; in medical terms known as "centripetal adiposity," or what it says in the article, turning women from "pears" to "...