Are Estrodial patches supposed to be an ultra low dose???

[Melody.T]

I recently switched from ?mg oral Estrodial to patches and just tealized the strongest dose is .?mg of Estrodial. I was actually planning on doubling my oral dose. I definitely feel like it's not doing anything. Is the (decimal point) .?mg correct dosage since it's a different delivery system?

[Melody.T]

Very interesting vcjhyt, if you're sure about it I guess everything is fine. My nipples just seem less sensitive after being on the patches for 4 days so far. Hmm :/

[Cindy]

No doses please. I removed one post.

[AnonyMs]

I don't think they are ultra low dose, but I found patches didn't work very well for me. My endo said that some people don't absorb estrogen from them very well. There was a huge difference when i went to an implant.

[Sapphire87]

Yes the doages on patches are quite a bit lower because the estrogen is going directly into your bloodstream from patches, instead of being digested throught the stomach and having to go through the liver.

[Laura_7]

Here were some infos concerning patches:
https://www.susans.org/forums/index.php/topic,189624.msg1687824.html#msg1687824

Well there is a calculation factor concerning patches...
but it has to be remembered its theoretical, skins are different...
so you might talk to your endo how it makes you feel, and possibly make adjustments ...

implants as AnonyMs pointed out might be a good idea... no hassle and steady doses...

[jeni]

The doses are lower. In many places, the doses are actually equivalent to low doses because they're targeting postmenopausal women rather than transgender women. The former require a lower effective dose. My endo warned me that she was not a fan of patches because the ones that are easily available often require impractically many to maintain a reasonable transitioning dose.

[kelly_aus]

I changed from pills to patches. I was on a fairly high dose of pills and have ended up, while on the patch, with a higher E level than I ever did on pills.

But yes, the apparent dose is smaller in a patch, but the amount you absorb is likely to be higher, due to no losses from digestion and avoiding the related pass through the liver - but you don't avoid the liver entirely, as once it hits the bloodstream, it will pass through the liver.

[MsMarlo]

The patches are supposed to be a lower dose and supposedly safer as they are easier on the liver, but that is about it on that.  I'm just starting HRT this week and my endo and I decided to go the sublingual route, as that is still easier on the liver and he has seen some very good results in his patients.

One thing that someone on a patch may do is double up, which may not be taht good of an idea.  In addition, the adhesives are not always what they are made out to be and you wind up having to replace a patch before its complete life span, not to mention the possibility of irritation from the adhesive itself.

I've got some peer reviewed literature on this out of Boston University Medical School (where my GP has left me for) if you're interested.  Let me know.  :-)

[ClaudiaLove]

Hello ,

if you look online there is a chart of equivalency between different estradiol sources . A single patch would still be very low dose , they are not really thought for our purpose and doses . I used to be covered in them , now i use oestorgel and it i a little more convenient .

[Jenna Marie]

Because patches are intended for menopausal cis women, yes, the dosages are fairly low. Bear in mind, however, that it's not *equivalent* to oral doses - X mg in patch is not the same at all as X mg in pills. (In fact, in terms of blood levels, it takes roughly 1/20th the amount by patch to achieve the same results as by pills.  Or in other words, a 0.1 mg patch (that is, 1/10th of a milligram) is equivalent in terms of average blood estrogen levels achieved to 2 mg of estrogen. Which means, if my math is correct, that a patch delivers about the same punch per milligram as 20 1 mg pills. That's not the same as saying it's 20X more *effective* in terms of feminization, though, because the patch doses are titrated for that effectiveness - a fancy way of saying that doctors prescribe patches in tenths of mg and pills in whole mg. They don't prescribe 2 mg per day in patches, as that would be 20 freaking patches. ) Still, it's possible that someone might end up wearing more than one patch, which can become a literal pain in the butt.

Also, there are patches with adhesive that does last, and if you're having problems with a different brand you can consider either switching brands or buying some Tegaderm or surgical tape and putting that on over.