Treatment Options

Find your comfort zone
While there's no way to avoid menopause, there are things you can do to reduce the impact of hot flashes, night sweats, and vaginal dryness. These include:

• Lifestyle Changes. Simple steps such as eating a balanced diet, getting regular exercise, and trying natural stress reducers like yoga or meditation can help you feel better and benefit your health overall. Before starting a new exercise program, talk with your healthcare provider about what types of exercise may be best for you.Learn about other healthy lifestyle changes
• Prescription Therapies. Hormone therapy (HT) such as ANGELIQ^® tablets (drospirenone/estradiol) supplements the body's low estrogen and progesterone levels. The estrogen in HT helps to relieve moderate to severe menopausal symptoms. It does not take much estrogen to help women manage their symptoms.   Also, it may not be necessary to raise hormone levels to what they were before menopause.

Easing the symptoms

HT is one of the most effective options to help manage menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, vaginal dryness, and potential bone loss. Below is an overview of the forms of HT currently available:

• Oral hormone therapies. HT has been available in pill form for decades. These medicines are taken at the same time daily and are extremely effective when it comes to treating menopausal symptoms. It is important that you take your pills as directed to experience steady relief from menopausal symptoms. There are different types of estrogens and progestins used in different oral HTs. ANGELIQ^® tablets (drospirenone/estradiol) contain estradiol and the progestin drsp^®. Ask your healthcare provider what this may mean for you. Estrogens with or without progestins should not be used for the prevention of cardiovascular disease or dementia. Drsp may increase potassium or lower the sodium in your blood. You should not take ANGELIQ if you have kidney, liver, or adrenal disease because these conditions may also increase the potassium in your blood.
• Patch therapies. Patch or transdermal HT delivers hormones directly into the bloodstream through the skin. Medicine is delivered continuously for efficient dosing and no spiking. Some patches are designed to last an entire week.
• Hormone gels and vaginal creams. Hormone gels are applied topically to the skin and sometimes can help relieve menopausal symptoms. HT creams containing small amounts of estrogen are applied directly to the vagina to help relieve vaginal soreness, dryness, and itching. Unlike other forms of HT, vaginal creams do not relieve hot flashes or night sweats.
• Vaginal inserts. Vaginal inserts are small rings that release estrogen. They are placed into the vagina and need to be replaced every 3 months.

With so many forms of HT available, you may want to talk with your healthcare provider about these options to determine which one may be right for you.

 

IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION

What is ANGELIQ used for?

ANGELIQ is used after menopause to:

• Reduce moderate to severe hot flashes
• Treat moderate to severe dryness, itching, and burning in or around the vagina
  • When prescribing solely for vaginal dryness, other treatments should be considered

Who should not use ANGELIQ?

Do not use ANGELIQ if you have had your uterus removed (hysterectomy). ANGELIQ contains a progestin to decrease the chances of getting cancer of the uterus. If you do not have a uterus, you do not need a progestin and you should not use ANGELIQ.

Do not start taking ANGELIQ if you have unusual vaginal bleeding, currently have or have had certain cancers, had a stroke or heart attack in the past year, currently have or have had blood clots, have kidney disease, liver disease, or disease of your adrenal glands, are allergic to ANGELIQ or any of its ingredients, or think you may be pregnant.

What are the warnings of less common but serious side effects of ANGELIQ?

Warnings of less common but serious side effects of ANGELIQ include breast lumps, unusual vaginal bleeding, dizziness and faintness, changes in speech, severe headaches, chest pain, shortness of breath, pains in your legs, changes in vision, and vomiting. Call your healthcare provider right away if you get any of these warning signs, or any other unusual symptom that concerns you.

What are common side effects of ANGELIQ?

Common side effects of ANGELIQ include headache, breast pain, irregular vaginal bleeding or spotting, stomach/abdominal cramps, bloating, nausea and vomiting, and hair loss.

You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

For important risk and use information, please see the full prescribing information.