Reference · Glossary

Menopause & HRT Glossary

The vocabulary of menopause and hormone therapy, defined in plain language. These are the terms that recur across clinical guidance, drug labels, and research on menopause care — gathered here as a single, citable reference.

36 terms · Last updated July 1, 2026

Stages of menopause

Perimenopause: The transition leading up to menopause, when hormone levels fluctuate and periods become irregular. It can last several years and is when many symptoms begin.
Menopause: The point defined as 12 consecutive months without a menstrual period, marking the permanent end of menstrual cycles. In the US it happens around age 51 on average.
Postmenopause: All the years after menopause has occurred. Estrogen levels remain low, and long-term considerations such as bone and heart health become more relevant.
Premature ovarian insufficiency (POI): Loss of normal ovarian function before age 40, leading to low estrogen and menopause-like symptoms earlier than expected.
Surgical menopause: Menopause caused by surgical removal of both ovaries (oophorectomy). Because hormone levels drop abruptly, symptoms are often sudden and intense.

Symptoms

Vasomotor symptoms (VMS): The medical umbrella term for hot flashes and night sweats — the most common symptoms of menopause.
Hot flash: A sudden feeling of heat, usually in the face, neck, and chest, often with flushing and sweating. Episodes typically last a few minutes.
Night sweats: Hot flashes that happen during sleep, sometimes intense enough to soak bedding and disrupt rest.
Genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM): A collection of symptoms caused by low estrogen in the vaginal and urinary tissues, including dryness, irritation, painful sex, and urinary symptoms.
Vaginal atrophy: Thinning, drying, and inflammation of the vaginal walls due to reduced estrogen. Now usually described as part of GSM.

Types of hormone therapy

Hormone therapy (HRT / MHT): Treatment that replaces hormones the body no longer makes after menopause. Also called menopausal hormone therapy (MHT). It is the most effective treatment for vasomotor symptoms in appropriate candidates.
Estrogen therapy (ET): Hormone therapy using estrogen alone. Generally prescribed for women who have had a hysterectomy and do not need endometrial protection.
Estrogen-progestogen therapy (EPT): Hormone therapy combining estrogen with a progestogen. Used for women who still have a uterus, to protect the uterine lining.
Systemic hormone therapy: Hormone therapy that circulates throughout the body — as a pill, patch, gel, spray, or ring — to treat body-wide symptoms such as hot flashes.
Local (vaginal) estrogen: Low-dose estrogen delivered directly to vaginal tissue as a cream, tablet, insert, or ring, primarily to treat GSM with minimal systemic absorption.
Transdermal: Delivered through the skin, as with an estradiol patch, gel, or spray. Transdermal routes bypass first-pass liver metabolism.

Hormones and drug classes

Estradiol: The main and most potent form of estrogen produced by the ovaries during reproductive years. Many FDA-approved therapies use estradiol identical to the body's own.
Conjugated equine estrogens (CEE): A mixture of estrogens historically derived from pregnant mares' urine, used in some oral hormone therapy products.
Progesterone: A hormone that, in therapy, protects the uterine lining from the stimulating effect of estrogen. Deficiency of endometrial protection can raise cancer risk.
Micronized progesterone: A form of progesterone processed into small particles for better absorption, structurally identical to the body's own progesterone.
Progestogen / Progestin: Progestogen is the general term for progesterone-like hormones; progestin usually refers to synthetic versions used to protect the endometrium.
Testosterone therapy: Use of testosterone, sometimes considered for low sexual desire after menopause. No testosterone product is FDA-approved specifically for women in the US.
SERM (selective estrogen receptor modulator): A drug that acts like estrogen in some tissues and blocks it in others. Used for specific menopause-related indications.
Ospemifene: An FDA-approved SERM taken as a pill to treat painful sex due to menopausal vaginal changes.

Nonhormonal options

Nonhormonal treatment: Any therapy for menopause symptoms that does not use estrogen or other hormones — relevant for people who cannot or prefer not to take hormones.
NK3 receptor antagonist: A drug class that blocks the neurokinin-3 receptor in a brain pathway tied to temperature control, reducing hot flashes without hormones.
Fezolinetant: The active ingredient in Veozah, an FDA-approved nonhormonal NK3 receptor antagonist for moderate-to-severe hot flashes. Carries a boxed liver-injury warning.
Elinzanetant: The active ingredient in Lynkuet, an FDA-approved dual NK1/NK3 receptor antagonist for moderate-to-severe hot flashes, approved in October 2025.
SSRI / SNRI for VMS: Certain antidepressants used, sometimes at low doses, to reduce hot flashes. Low-dose paroxetine (Brisdelle) is the only SSRI FDA-approved for this use.

Clinical and safety terms

Bioidentical hormones: Hormones chemically identical to those the body makes. Many FDA-approved products are bioidentical; the term is separate from whether a product is compounded.
Compounded hormones: Hormone preparations custom-mixed by a pharmacy. Compounded products are not FDA-approved and are not held to the same testing and consistency standards.
FDA-approved: A product reviewed by the US Food and Drug Administration and found to meet standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality for its labeled use.
Endometrial hyperplasia: Overgrowth of the uterine lining, which unopposed estrogen can promote and which can precede uterine cancer — the reason estrogen is paired with a progestogen when a uterus is present.
Endometrial protection: Use of a progestogen alongside systemic estrogen to keep the uterine lining from overgrowing.
Bone mineral density (BMD): A measure of the mineral content of bone. Estrogen loss after menopause accelerates bone thinning and raises fracture risk.
Boxed warning: The FDA's strongest warning, appearing in a box at the top of a drug's label to flag serious or life-threatening risks.