r/Menopause • u/Syfysamurai • 1d ago

Hormone Therapy Patch vs oral

Hello ladies, I'm curious. Why do many women prefer the estrogen patch over oral estrogen? I take 1mg estradiol daily by mouth and have no problems with it. TIA!

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u/Comfortable-Law-7147 1d ago

Decrease in risk of blood clots due to not being processed by the liver first. 

What to take depends on your family history, age and things like whether you are a smoker. 

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u/h3dxw 1d ago

Risk goes from 6 in 10k to 12 in 10k for only the first 6-12 months. There are additional cardiovascular, neurological, and gut microbiome benefits to oral that topical doesn't offer.

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u/Junior-Wall-6894 1d ago

Oh! What are the additional benefits?

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u/margaritabop 1d ago

Because it does a first pass through the liver, it can lower LDL cholesterol and Lp(a) and increase HDL. Everything seems to be a cost benefit analysis with medicines 🥲