HJBR May/Jun 2025

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF BATON ROUGE I  MAY / JUN 2025 31 FINAL THOUGHTS Remember: Staying current doesn’t mean you need to read every study published since the dawn of time. But when your patient starts quoting Halle Berry’s latest interview about hormone therapy, wouldn’t it be nice to respond with something more current than “Well, back in my residency…”? Besides, how often do you get permission to count watching celebrity interviews as continuing medical education? Just, maybe don’t put that on your CME form. Menopause care is undergoing a much- needed transformation, but there’s still work to do. It’s time to move beyond outdated fears and misinformation and embrace the evidence; because, at the end of the day, menopause isn’t just a phase, it’s a major transition in women’s health, and they deserve the best care possible. The real challenge now is ensuring that every provider is equipped with the knowledge to offer that care. The question isn’t whether we should rethink menopause treatment, it’s whether we’re willing to act on what we now know. Women are demand- ing better. It’s time we deliver. n REFERENCES 1. Fatima, U.; Rasheed, R. “The unmet needs of menopausal women in primary care.” British Jour- nal of General Practice, vol. 74, suppl. 1 (June): bjgp24X737949. DOI: 10.3399/bjgp24X737949 2. Welton, A.J.; Vickers, M.R.; Kim, J.; et al. “Health related quality of life after combined hormone re- placement therapy: randomised controlled trial.” BMJ, vol. 337 (Aug 21, 2008): a1190. DOI: 10.1136/ bmj.a1190 3. Williams, R.S.; Christie, D.; Sistrom, C. “As- sessment of the understanding of the risks and benefits of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in primary care physicians.” American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, vol. 193, issue 2 (August 2005): 551-6 (discussion 556-8). DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2005.03.061 4. Low, T.L.; Cheong, A.T.; Devaraj, N.K.; Ismail, R. “Prevalence of offering menopause hor- mone therapy among primary care doctors and its associated factors: A cross-sectional study.” PLoS One, vol. 19, no. 9 (Sep. 25, 2024): e0310994 (eCollection2024). DOI: 10.1371/jour- nal.pone.0310994 5. Al Wattar, B.H.; Rogozińska, E.; Vale, C.; et al. “Ef- fectiveness and safety of menopause treatments: pitfalls of available evidence and future research need.” Climacteric, vol. 27, no. 2 (April 2024): 154- 158. DOI: 10.1080/13697137.2023.2297880 6. Davis, S.R.; Herbert, D.; Reading, M.; Bell, R.J. “Health-care providers’ views of menopause and its management: a qualitative study.” Climacter- ic, vol. 24, no. 6 (December 2021): 612-617. DOI: 10.1080/13697137.2021.1936486 7. Langer, R.D. “On the need to clarify and dis- seminate contemporary knowledge of hormone therapy initiated near menopause.” Climac- teric, vol. 13, no. 4 (August 2010):303-6. DOI: 10.3109/13697137.2010.496316 8. Chlebowski, R.T.; Aragaki, A.K.; Pan, K.; et al. “Randomized trials of estrogen-alone and breast cancer incidence: a meta-analysis.” Breast Can- cer Research and Treatment, vol. 206, no. 1 (July 2024): 177-184. DOI: 10.1007/s10549-024-07307-9 9. Santen, R.J. “Menopausal hormone therapy and breast cancer.” The Journal of Steroid Bio- chemistry and Molecular Biology, vol. 142 (July 2014): 52-61. DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2013.06.010 10. Hodis, H.N.; Mack, W.J.; Henderson, V.W.; et al. “Vascular Effects of Early versus Late Postmeno- pausal Treatment with Estradiol.” The New Eng- land Journal of Medicine, vol. 374, no. 13 (March 31, 2016): 1221-31. DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1505241 MENOPAUSE SPECIALIST REFERRAL CHECKLIST Consider referral to a menopause specialist when a female patient aged 35 or up reports: PRIMARY SYMPTOMS: • Memory problems or brain fog. • Sleep disturbances. • Muscle and joint pain. • Mood fluctuations. • Low libido or sexual health concerns. ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS: • Symptoms significantly impact daily life or work. • Current treatments are not providing adequate relief. • Patient feels dismissed or unsupported. • Multiple symptoms present simultaneously. • Need for comprehensive hormone therapy evaluation.