Elleste Duet

Elleste Duet is a form of sequential (or cyclical) HRT usually suggested for women who are having menopausal symptoms but still have their periods. It includes synthetic versions of oestrogen and progesterone.

Oestrogen helps manage hot flushes, night sweats, and other menopausal symptoms, while progesterone lowers the risk of womb (or endometrial) cancer. Additionally, oestrogen can help protect against osteoporosis, which some women may experience after menopause.

During menopause, the ovaries produce less oestrogen, which leads to certain symptoms. These can include difficulty sleeping, a reduced sex drive, hot flushes, vaginal dryness and discomfort during sex, low mood and anxiety, and night sweats.

The oestrogen in combined HRT helps make up for the body's natural drop in oestrogen levels and can alleviate these symptoms. It's known that oestrogens in HRT can lessen the frequency of menopausal symptoms by 75%.

If you haven't had a hysterectomy, the oestrogen in combined HRT can cause the lining of the womb to become thicker than usual, which might increase the risk of endometrial cancer. The progesterone in Elleste Duet helps prevent this thickening, significantly reducing the risk of cancer.

To wrap up today's science talk: during menopause, the drop in oestrogen levels increases the risk of bones becoming weak or breaking. The oestrogen in combined HRT helps to counter this and can prevent osteoporosis.

If you're experiencing menopausal symptoms but still having periods, combined sequential HRT options such as Elleste Duet and Evorel Sequi patches are typically recommended.

As with all HRT, combined sequential options may cause side effects and might not be suitable if you're on certain medications or have specific health conditions. During your consultation, our clinician will determine the most appropriate treatments for you.

If you've gone through menopause, continuous combined HRT options such as Indivina and Evorel Conti patches are often the most suitable choice. You're generally considered 'postmenopausal' if you haven't had a period for a year. With continuous combined HRT, you take it daily without any breaks.

Oestrogen-only treatments like Elleste Solo and Estradot patches are recommended for women who have had a total hysterectomy, meaning their entire womb, including the cervix, has been removed.

Different HRT products can differ in the amount of hormones they contain, so how sensitive you are to hormone levels can be an important factor in choosing the right HRT for you.

Elleste Duet comes in two strengths: a low dose with 1mg of estradiol and 1mg of norethisterone, and a medium dose with 2mg of estradiol and 1mg of norethisterone.

Initially, you'll typically be given the lowest hormonal dose for the shortest time to see how your body reacts. If you feel the dose is too low, it's important to talk to our clinician about possibly adjusting it.

Although both contain the same hormones, Kliofem is a continuous combined HRT tablet, while Elleste Duet is a combined sequential HRT tablet. This means you take them differently.

Kliofem is another HRT option suggested for women who are postmenopausal and haven't had a period for at least a year. On the other hand, Elleste Duet is intended for women going through menopause who are still having periods.

It's generally not recommended, and it's crucial that you talk to our clinician about it first. Some women choose to delay their periods while using Elleste Duet by taking extra tablets instead of sticking to the usual 28-day cycle.

Taking too many tablets containing oestrogen can be harmful because increased oestrogen levels can cause the uterine lining to thicken too much. This raises your risk of womb cancer. Therefore, it's important to discuss delaying your period with our clinician beforehand.

Novofem and Elleste Duet both have estradiol and norethisterone acetate, and they are both sequential combined HRT treatments. The pill schedule is identical for both. The only differences are the pill colours, the manufacturer, and the packaging. Novofem, like Kliofem, is produced by Novo Nordisk, not Mylan.

Novofem comes in just one dosage: 1mg of estradiol and 1mg of norethisterone. It doesn't have options for low or medium dose tablets.