Will You Have To Take Hormone Replacement Therapy After A Hysterectomy?

Hormone replacement therapy can help many women showing symptoms of menopause. These symptoms can be brought about by natural menopause or by certain surgical procedures. If you are soon to be undergoing a hysterectomy, you may need to take hormone replacement therapy.

Will you have to take hormone replacement therapy after a hysterectomy?

Hysterectomies are often combined with a procedure called an oophorectomy, which is a removal of the ovaries. Not all hysterectomies involve removal of the ovaries. For those hysterectomies that leave the ovaries in place, patients are not recommended to take hormone replacements. Ovaries are responsible for the production of estrogen. As long as the ovaries (or even just one ovary) are (is) still in the body, the body will still produce its own estrogen.

If your ovaries (both of them) are to be removed during your hysterectomy, then you will be faced with the decision of whether or not to take hormone replacement therapy.

How can hormone therapy help?

After the removal of your ovaries, your body's production of estrogen plummets. This causes a condition called "surgical menopause." Unlike natural menopause, surgical menopause comes on suddenly. Women who undergo surgical menopause have no time to adjust to the changes in their bodies, and symptoms of surgical menopause can be severe. These symptoms include:

• Fatigue
• Difficulty regulating temperature
• Itchy skin
• Depression
• Loss of libido
• Vaginal dryness
• Anxiety
• Irritability and mood swings
• Confusion
• Osteoperosis

By replacing the body's supply of estrogen, hormone replacement therapy can reduce these symptoms and help regulate the body. In addition, hormone replacement therapy can also reduce risk for conditions like heart disease, dementia and Parkinson's disease.

Is hormone replacement therapy recommended for all women who have their ovaries removed at the time of hysterectomy?

No, some women are more likely to benefit from hormone replacement therapy than others. In fact, the older a woman is, the more likely the hormone replacement therapy would increase her risk for other conditions, such as strokes and blood clots. This is why hormone replacement therapy is best advised for women by their physicians. A skilled and knowledgeable doctor will know when hormone replacement therapy is the right treatment for a woman.

For more information about whether or not you should take hormone replacement therapy after your hysterectomy, talk to your doctor or other professionals like Potter's House Apothecary, Inc. He or she will be able to tell you more about how you could benefit from hormone replacement therapy.