Hormone replacement patches

Hormone replacement patches should be applied below the waist on the buttocks or thighs NOT on the breasts. 

Avoid placing the defibrillator paddles or pads directly on top of a transdermal medication patch, such as a nitroglycerin, nicotine, analgesic, or hormone replacement patch. The patch can block delivery of energy and cause a small burn to the skin. Remove the medication patch and wipe the area clean before defibrillation. 

Transdermal patches are applied to the skin. The drug is mixed with the adhesive for the patch, and so it lies next to the skin. The skin can readily absorb many chemicals and so can absorb drugs such as nitroglycerin (for heart disease), morphine derivatives (for constant, severe pain), estrogen (for hormone replacement therapy), or nicotine (for easing symptoms that result when a patient stops smoking). 

Combined hormone replacement therapy is also available as self-adhesive patches and creams. 

The low oral bioavailability of hormone-replacement drugs due to intestinal and first-pass metabolism requires the use of higher doses of these drugs, which are associated with many side effects. Parenteral administration of sex steroids as well as use of the transdermal route has been viewed as an alternative. However, the transdermal route has certain limitations, such as the visibility and palpability of the patch as well as possible skin irritation. These drawbacks have limited the use of this route. The intranasal route has therefore been considered as an alternative [128],... 

TABLE 23-S Combined Progestin/Estrogen Hormone Replacement Therapy Products (Available in Tablets or a Transdermal Patch) ... 

Skin patches are adhesive patches which contain a reservoir of the drug to be administered. The drug slowly passes from the patch through the skin and into the bloodstream. They are commonly used in hormone replacement therapy, nicotine replacement therapy, pain relief, relief of symptoms of angina, motion sickness, birth control and in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). 

Norethindrone acetate also can be administered transdermally along with estradiol when formulated as a patch. This combination of hormones can be utilized as part of either a continuous or a cyclic hormone replacement regimen. 

The applications of these patches are numerous. Commonplace applications include smoke cessation, hormone replacement, and eardiovascular aids such as nitroglycerin delivery. New transdermal patches hit the market every day, with more items that enable pain cessation becoming a reality. Other innovative products, such as foot care and cosmetic patches, and nasal dilator strips, have entered the market in recent years. Their existence is possible because of the unique functional properties of the pressure-sensitive adhesives integral to the product. ... 

Menopause. A number of products are on the market for replacement of hormones lost after the menopause. They include oral medication, injections, and transdermal skin patches (the hormones... 

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