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In a review of mental health aspects of menopause, emphasis is laid on the psychiatric morbidity that precedes any somatic menopausal symptoms. Only sweating and hot flushes are directly related to the menopause. Complaints such as irritability, headaches, fatigue, depression, and ''mental imbalance'' increase prior to the menopause and decrease after it. Various situational factors have been considered as possible precipitants of emotional disturbances: a child marrying, or having 3 or more children. However, studies indicate that women in the year of the menopause were less likely to develop an episode of mental illness requiring admission to a hospital than at other times. Estrogens do improve symptoms of flushes, dryness and sweats. Changes in emotional imbalance are less clear. Women who come for treatment of menopausal symptoms may frequently be suffering from depression which makes toleration of these symptoms more difficult.
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PMID:Mental health aspects. 95 92

After exploring the possible mechanism of action of oral contraceptives through an estrogen progestin combination, as well as by means of the sequential method, the pathophysiologic and side effects of the pill, as it appears in the literature, is explored in depth. Thromboembolitic disease is the only condition in which there is a definite association with the use of oral contraceptive pill, and there is some doubt as to how strong the association really is. Some studies suggest that mortality from thromboembolic disorders which can be attributed to the pill is about 3/100,000 per year. Studies have also shown that mortality trends from thromboembolitic disease among women of childbearing ages were parallel to the increased use of oral contraceptives among this group of women, however the data may be weak. Data from various sources indicate that the estrogenic component of the pill are primarily responsible for the thrombogenic effect, with estrogen increasing platelet adhesiveness and enhancing coagulability. Progestogens, on the other hand, enhance fibroinolysis and do not alter platelet function or coagulation. Other side effects of the pill such as naseau, headaches, and weight gain are usually not of any serious consequence. According to 1 study, amenorrhea after cessation of the pill has occurred in very small numbers, but 98% of the women are ovulatory within 3 months after cessation of the pill. The oral contraceptive pill may actually have beneficial effects on genital and endometrial cancer due to the pill's progesterone content. Estrogens have shown both a positive and negative influence on cancer of the uterus and breast, depending on the menopausal status of the women. It is generally agreed that the best dosage of hormones in the pill is the lowest possible varying with the size and body weight of the woman, among other factors. Some studies have shown that in Puerto Rico, IUD users have a higher continuation rate than characteristics than the pill users, thereby making the 2 groups incomparable.
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PMID:Oral contraceptives: a review of the literature. 109 15

The side effects of using estrogen treatments to relieve menopausal symptoms in women are presented. Estrogens are effective in relieving headaches, vertigo, palpitations, and nervous symptoms such as depression, as well as degeneration and atrophy of the genital organs. In Norway, 2.5% of women over 45 as compared with 50% in the U.S. use estrogens to relieve menopausal symptoms. The incidence of endometrial cancer has risen from 9.2/100,000 in 1955 to 15.4 in 1974. Increased susceptibility to endometrial cancer has been linked to long-term use of estrogens, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and nulliparity. In American studies, Premarin has been associated with increased risk of cancer related to the chemical equilinine, which has a long half-life. After menopause, the need for estrogen is met by the conversion of androstenedione, which is produced by the adrenal gland. When estrogens are taken, it may result in an overstimulation of the endometrium, which could cause cancer. Estrogens have bene found useful and safe for short-term relief of menopausal symptoms, and any patient using estrogens should be under routine observation to prevent development of cancer.
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PMID:[From the Adverse Drug Reaction Committee. Can long-term estrogen treatment induce uterine neoplasms in post-climacteric women?]. 125 36

This review of the effects of sex steroids and oral contraceptives (OCs) on neurologic function in health and disease covers the following: sex steroids and their interaction with neural tissues; the human menstrual cycle and OCs; and sex hormones and OCs in human neurologic disease, i.e., stroke (thromboembolic cerebral infarction, subarachnoid hemorrhage, vascular malformations, and cerebral venous thrombosis), migraine, movement disorders, nervous system neoplasm, and the peripheral nerve. The various sex hormones may exert their effects on the nervous system directly or undergo conversion to more active metabolites. Interactions of sex hormones with neural substrates subserve numerous activities essential to both the well-being and perpetuation of the individual and the species. These interactions are key to the sexual differentiation of the brain, control of the brain-pituitary-gonad axis, and to the establishment of normal patterns of sexual and aggressive behavior in both sexes. Additionally, they play a role in temperature regulation (progesterone), caloric homeostasis (estrogen), and possibly sensory discrimination. The potent influences exerted by sex steroids on catecholamine and indoleamine turnover and the colocalization of labeled E2 within catecholamine and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) positive perikarya suggest that many of the physiologic effects of sex steroids are mediated by modulation of specific monoaminergic and peptidergic pathways. Estrogens and aromatizable androgens also induce irreversible structural alterations in the rodent hypothalamus during the neonatal and peripubertal periods that are predominantly synaptogenic. In adult mammals, estrogens induce pathologic changes in the hypophysiotropic hypothalamus that may contribute to reproductive senescence in some species. Data from a series of retrospective and prospective studies have implicated OC use as an independent risk factor for the development of hemorrhagic and nonhemorrhagic stroke. Hormonal changes accompanying the pregnant state and the estrogen (and possibly progestogen) content of OCs may be predisposing factors in thromboembolic cerebral infarction, subarachnoid hemorrhage, cerebral venous thrombosis, and bleeding from intracranial and spinal vascular malformations. There are well-documented temporal associations of migrainous headache with specific phases of the menstrual cycle and the modifying influences of pregnancy, the menopause, and OC use. Also well established are relationships between endogenous and exogenous sex hormones and chorea. Fluctuating sex steroids also influence neuropsychiatric states, such depression and neuroendocrine disorders.
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PMID:Neurology of sex steroids and oral contraceptives. 302 81

Drug companies have been at work throughout the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s trying to reduce the steroid content of their oral contraceptives (OCs). Researchers have been successful in reducing steroid content while maintaining effectiveness, thereby making OCs safer. In the 1st half of the natural menstrual cycle, a woman secretes estrogen as the dominant steroid product. In the 2nd half, estrogen is the principal reproductive hormone. Estrogens inhibit ovulation, possibly by inhibiting implantation, altering ovum transplant, or in some way preventing corpus luteum function, which is necessary to maintain early pregnancies and the endometrium. There are still only 2 estrogens and 6 progestins on the market today. They are probably the most thoroughly studied chemical ever seen in the history of pharmacy or medicine. 1 of the estrogens, mestranol, is really a drug of the past. In the body, mestranol is converted to ethinyl estradiol, the other estrogen on the market. Consequently, there is no reason to use mestranol itself. Within the dose range of 50-100 mcg, there's little difference in contraceptive effect. Progestins are the other active ingredient in the combination OC. Their principal action is the thickening of the cervical mucus, which prevents sperm penetration. Also, with sufficient progesterone, ovulation is inhibited, but this happens in only 40% of those patients taking, for instance, the "mini-pill" (which consists of progesterone only). The progestins and the estrogens work in concert to make OCs a highly effective contraceptive method. Recent surveys conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and National Cancer Institute looked into the relative effectiveness of OCs. Nordette had a use effectiveness failure rate of 3.5; Ovral, 3.6. Loestrin 1/20 -- norethindrone acetate, 1 mg, and estinyl estradiol, 20 mcg -- shows a failure rate of 4.5. This indicates that the threshold for an effective dose of estinyl estradiol in OCs is 30 mcg. For 1 mini-pill, Ovrette, the failure rate is 9.5 -- much higher. Depo-Provera has a failure rate of 0.7. The primary complaint from women taking OCs is spotting and breakthrough bleeding during the cycle. 30-50% of women given OCs stop taking them within a year. OC side effects include nausea, fluid retention, breast tenderness, leukorrhea, hypomenorrhea, headaches, spotting around the face, hypertension, and visual changes. 1 of the risks of birth control pills may be cervical dysplasia -- changes in the cells of the cervix. The relative risk of cervical cancer with OCs after 5-9 years is approximately 1.8. Clinical cases of deep vein thrombosis number 1/1000 per year among nonusers of OCs. Among users, the rate is 3 times as high: 3/1000. The most serious potential adverse effect is myocardial infarction. Of the excess deaths attributed to OCs (23.3 total per 100,000 users), 22.7 are due to myocardial infarctions and hemorrhage. The discussion also briefly reviews other methods of contraception -- Depo-Provera, male contraceptives, implants, the diapragm, and IUDs.
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PMID:Prescription contraceptives: countering the risks. 405 Jun 70

All medications have side effects in certain patients; none is 100% "safe" and the physicain must determine the benefit-to-risk ratio of each contraceptive method for a particular patient. 81% of white, nonCatholic women aged 20-24 who are college graduates use oral contraceptives, an extraordinary acceptance level for a method not even available in 1960. The various preparations available in the U.S, amount of estrogen and progestogen in each, and side effects are then surveyed. Estrogen irritates the gastric mucosa and diminishes rate of sodium excretion by the kidneys; this causes the nausea, edema, general bloating, tension, and headaches which most commonly cause women to discontinue the medication. The patient with full breasts who menstruates normally should not be overloaded with estrogen while a high-estrogen compound might benefit the woman with small breasts and scanty menses. Estrogens are known stimulants for the growth of uterine leiomyomas; if such lesions are present an antiestrogenic progestogen is indicated. High estrogen pills are more likely to stimulate breast growth and increase discomfort from fibrocyctic disease while a progestin-dominant combination will reduce this discomfort. The "19-nor" progestins are essentailly variants of testosterone and may produce hirsutism, alopecia, acne, hypomenorrhea, or even amenorrhea. T hey also may increase appetite and cause excessive weight gain. The total effect is complicated by such factors as the particular progestin used. The 19-norsteroid compounds are partly metabolized to estrogen and increase the estrogenic effect while norgestrel produces antiestrogenic activity. Newer marketing methods have tried to simplify administration by inserting 7 iron tablets or 7 placebos so the user takes a pill every day for 28 days. For patients who have noted side effects during the 7-day interval they are not taking the pill (undoubtedly related to temporary estrogen insufficiency) .02 mg ethinyl estradiol may be used. The sequential method more closely simulates the normal menstrual cycle and can be used to advantage in women who suffer prolonged anovulation after cessaton of combination therapy and in women past 35 in whom the increased risk of pregnancy is offset by declining fertility potential. Both serious and minor adverse reactions to various forms of therapy are detailed. These include cutaneous, nervous system, metabloic, and endocrine system changes.
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PMID:Present status of oral contraceptives: 1. effectiveness; basis for selection; side effects; metabolic changes. 1230 85

Trigeminal nerve-mediated pain disorders such as migraine, temporomandibular joint disorder, and classical trigeminal neuralgia are more prevalent in women than in men. Female laboratory animals also show greater responses to various nociceptive stimuli than male animals. However, current knowledge of migraine pathogenesis is based primarily on experimental studies conducted in male animals and lack of migraine research with female animals limits clinical relevance. Migraine is triggered by any alteration in the intrinsic or extrinsic milieu and women at reproductive age are continuously prone to waxing and waning effects of female sex hormones. The experimental approach to this problem is complex because the rodent estrous cycle differs from the human cycle, and because exogenous hormone replacement in ovariectomized females has its limitations. The existence of multiple estrogen receptors in the trigeminal system also presents a challenge. Estrogens do not seem to directly affect calcitonin gene-related peptide or 5-HT(1D) receptors in the trigeminal system. Nonetheless, 2 estrogen receptors activate MAPK/ERK signaling pathway that mediates nociceptive processing in trigeminal nucleus caudalis. In addition, estrogen enhances susceptibility to cortical spreading depression, the neurobiological event underlying migraine aura, which may be independent of the estrous cycle. Further studies in female animals are required to clarify mechanisms underlying sex differences with respect to fluctuating sex hormones, cortical spreading depression, and excitability of the trigeminovascular system.
Headache 2011 Jun
PMID:Sex-related differences in animal models of migraine headache. 2163 75

The first hormonal pill was approved in the 60s of the twentieth century Since that time, oral contraception has been used worldwide by dozens of women due to its high availability as well as relative ease and safety of taking. The main side effects of oral contraception include elevated risk for venous thromboembolism (VTE). Estrogens increase the probability of VTE development, depending on the dose in medication, and third-generation progestins increase the risk of VTE development more than older-generation progestins. Also, the coexistence of hereditary thrombophilia increases the risk of VTE development in women using oral contraceptives. Other side effects include changes in the carbohydrate and lipid economy Progestins in oral contraceptives decrease HDL cholesterol levels but increase LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol levels. Additionally estrogens are a recognized mitogenic factor for the epithelium of the mammary gland, acting proliferative on the glandular tissue and in the same way influence on the increased risk of breast cancer development. Patients sometimes complain about some subjective side symptoms such as headache, mood changes, nausea, back pain, breast pain and swelling, as well as decreased libido. Some patients discontinue oral contraception due to fear of side effects or temporary ailments before con- sulting their doctor what may result in unintended pregnancy The aim of the following paper was to present most frequent side effects of oral contraception, ways of their moni- toring and diagnosis.
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PMID:[Selected aspects of oral contraception side effects]. 2566 65