As an attending physician of his co-founded practice, Partners in Obstetrics and Women's Health, Dr. Francisco Garcini treats many women who are progressing through menopause. Dr. Francisco Garcini comes to this work as a menopause provider certified through the North American Menopause Society. According to currently available statistics, women in and approaching menopause are 200 percent more likely to experience depression as compared to women in other stages of life. Prior research has not addressed the possibility of preventing menopause-related depressive symptoms, but a recent study suggests that such prevention may be possible using hormone therapy. Researchers at the University of North Carolina offered a year of hormone therapy to 172 women between the ages of 45 and 60 who were approaching menopause or in early menopause but did not have a diagnosis of depression. One group of study participants received a skin patch containing estrogen and a complimentary progesterone pill, while the remaining patients received a placebo. By the end of the study, 32 percent of women who received a placebo experienced depressive symptoms that were clinically significant. Meanwhile, only 17 percent of those receiving hormone treatment struggled with similar symptoms. Hormone treatment proved more effective for women in early menopause (as compared to those in perimenopause) as well as for women not experiencing major life stressors. Experts note that this difference may stem from the fact that stressful events as well as hormonal fluctuations can destabilize the body's regulation of the stress chemical cortisol.
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AuthorDr. Francisco Garcini applies his medical expertise to caring for his patients at Gynecologic Surgery & Menopause Solutions in New Lenox, Illinois. Archives
January 2018
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