Purpose of review: In the practice
of 'bioidentical hormone
therapy', it is our belief that pharmacists are compounding bioidentical
hormone therapy with the best intentions. These pharmacists are, however, ill
informed regarding the lack of scientific underpinning associated with the
efficacy and safety of the practice of bioidentical hormone therapy. It is the
purpose of this review to systematically examine the scientific rigor of the
arguments posed by the proponents of bioidentical hormone therapy, and to
differentiate the practice of bioidentical hormone therapy from the legitimate
practice of pharmacy compounding.
Recent findings: Most
medical organizations have in essence refuted the bioidentical hormone therapy
claims as unsubstantiated. The profession of pharmacy needs to address this
issue in an authoritarian, scientific way, outside of the compounding issue.
Summary: Bioidentical or
natural hormones are expected to have similar efficacy and safety profiles as
the commercially available hormonal therapies that have been studied in
clinical trials, regardless of whether the active principle hormones are
compounded by individual pharmacies or manufactured by large companies. Estriol is a weak estrogen that is not Food and Drug
Administration approved for use as a prescription drug in the United States;
thus, clinical trials are necessary to demonstrate the efficacy and safety
profile for estriol. Further, supplementary clinical trials are necessary to
determine whether there are efficacy or safety differences between natural
progesterone and synthetic progestin, as studies to date are inconclusive.
Thus check the lable to see if it is truly as
bioactive. Various BHRT: Estriol 100% estriol; Biest (biestrogen) 20% estradiol 0% estriol; Triest
(triestrogen) 10% estrone 100%0 estradiol
80% estriol; Progesterone, Testerone. – list from www.worstpill.org
