Introduction to steroids in the menopause.

Menopausal symptoms and signs associated with the reduction of ovarian function include an increased incidence of cardiovascular disease and loss of bone mass as well as less serious but more uncomfortable symptoms such as vasomotor flushes and atrophy of the vaginal wall. Although unopposed estrogen effectively reverses these and other menopausal symptoms, it is well established that without the addition of progestin there is an unacceptably high risk of developing hyperplasia or cancer of the endometrium. Depending on the type and dose of progestin added, however, this addition may reverse estrogen's beneficial cardiovascular effects and produce unwanted side effects. Lower doses and newer progestins, such as norgestimate, gestodene, and desogestrel, have demonstrated a decreased potential to reverse the positive cardiovascular effects of estrogen while still eradicating persisting or de novo endometrial hyperplasia.