title: Endometrial morphology and bleeding patterns as a function of progestogen supplementation.
abstract: Progestogens are added to estrogen replacement therapy for postmenopausal women to prevent endometrial hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma, and in sequential therapy to promote a regular and predictable bleed. This protective effect of progestogens is well recognized, but it is not due to endometrial shedding at a withdrawal bleed and cannot be predicted from the pattern or timing of the bleed. While irregular bleeding may be a reflection of endometrial abnormality and possibly insufficient progestogen, a regular controlled bleed may also occur in the presence of endometrial abnormality. A large multicenter study of postmenopausal women who were taking standard 28-day sequential regimens of estrogen and progestogen found a 2.7% prevalence of complex hyperplasia, and most of these women had a normal and regular bleeding pattern. Regular bleeding may also occur from an atrophic endometrium. Therapy employing a longer cycle with a course of progestogen given every 4 or 4 months may improve patient continuance for long-term therapy. During the estrogen-only phase, the endometrium becomes increasingly proliferative, and simple or cystic hyperplasia may develop only after about 12 weeks, and then can be corrected by progestogen. Women seem to prefer a less frequent withdrawal bleed despite the higher incidence of breakthrough bleeding compared to a monthly loss. Continuous combined therapy with estrogen and progestogen taken every day causes no withdrawal bleed, though some will have light breakthrough bleeding for the initial 2 or 3 months. The continuous progestogen keeps the endometrium atrophic and also converts preexisting complex endometrial hyperplasia occurring during sequential therapy to a normal state. As yet, there are no clinical guidelines that can give reassurance about the state of the endometrium in postmenopausal women who are taking hormone replacement therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Solihull Hospital, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: D W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Sturdee
mesh_terms: D000230:Adenocarcinoma / Q000517:prevention & control; D000368:Aged; D004714:Endometrial Hyperplasia / Q000517:prevention & control; D016889:Endometrial Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control; D004717:Endometrium / Q000473:pathology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D015914:Estrogen Replacement Therapy / Q000592:standards; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008599:Menstruation Disturbances / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017698:Postmenopause / Q000502:physiology; D011372:Progestins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D011372:Progestins