Dear Doctor, salve
Two weeks ago I had a hysterectomy, which the Doctor left my ovaries. Six days after surgery I began to have night sweats, which occurred every hour on the hour. I had been put on premarin, due to the fact that my ovaries may not be functioning. Last Wednesday I went back to the doctor to say that this was not helping me. He then put me on estratest. As of last night I still have continued to have night sweats. I am to the point that I do not know what to do. In four weeks I have to go back to work, and I cannot imagine being up all night and trying to put in a full day. I was wondering if there were any suggestion?
I read in your literature provided that a blood test should be performed to determine if it is even my ovaries functioning or could it be my thyroid? I would appreciate any information you could provide me with because to no avail, nothing else has worked. One more thing, I forgot to mention that I am 43 and this was an emergency surgery.
Reply:
Hi,
It sounds as if you are very uncomfortable. It is not at all uncommon for ovaries to fail following hysterectomy and there is a section of the web site that addresses this issue specifically. It is called Ovarian Failure Following Hysterectomy and you should read it carefully.
As far as a blood test is concerned, even if the results are normal, it does not matter. The point is that you are having significant symptoms and this is an indication that your ovaries are failing. As you mention, there is the possibility that this may be a thyroid problem, but although this should be tested for, it is an unlikely cause, given your recent surgery.
If the Estratest does not relieve your symptoms soon, I would consider changing to a non oral form of HRT, such as a transdermal patch or gel. If you use the gel, you will have to obtain it from a compounding pharmacy, such as College Pharmacy and they can be contacted through the link on my “links” page. If all else fails, subcutaneous hormone implants rarely fail to relieve symptoms.
Dr N