Utrogestan™ (micronised progesterone) information sheet

What is Utrogestan™?

Utrogestan™ 100mg oral capsule is micronised progesterone. This is a natural progestogen hormone, derived from plants that are biochemically identical to the progesterone hormone produced by your ovaries. This is sometimes called a ‘body identical’ or ‘bioidentical’ hormone. Progesterone is a type of hormone called a progestogen.

Utrogestan™, taken in combination with oestrogen, forms part of hormone replacement therapy – HRT.

The hormone oestrogen is needed to manage symptoms of the menopause. You can take it as a patch, gel, spray or tablet. Oestrogen taken by itself thickens the lining of the womb, increasing the risk of cancer of the womb. A progestogen hormone, like Utrogestan™, keeps the lining of the womb thin, reducing this risk.

When should I take it?

As Utrogestan™ capsules are mildly sedative, it’s best to take Utrogestan™ before bedtime.

You should take Utrogestan™ at least two hours after eating.

What are the different ways of taking Utrogestan™?

There are two ways of taking Utrogestan™

If it’s 6-12 months from your last period bleed, Utrogestan ™ may be taken sequentially, so that you have a bleed every month again.

• 200mg oral Utrogestan™capsules (two of the 100mg capsules) are taken for 14 nights of every month (as advised by your doctor). The easiest way to do this is to start on the first of every month and take 2x100mg capsules of Utrogestan™every night till the 14th of the month
• Do not take the capsules for the rest of the month. Start taking them again on the first of the next month
• You take the oestrogen every day with no breaks
• It’s likely that you’ll have a monthly bleed

If it’s been more than 6-12 months from your last period bleed, Utrogestan™ may be taken continually with your oestrogen, so that you don’t have a monthly bleed.

• 100mg oral capsule is taken at night. The licence for the medication is to take it for 25 nights out of 28. There should be no harm from taking every night if you forget to miss it.

What are the side effects?

It’s common to have some irregular bleeding or change to your monthly bleeding pattern.

If you have a CONTINUOUS regime, it’s common to have some bleeding in the first 3 to 6months. If this persists, please speak to your doctor.

If you have a SEQUENTIAL regime, there may be a change to your monthly bleed. It may be heavier or lighter, and it may be irregular. The pattern should settle. If you bleed more than monthly, or if the bleeds are heavy, please speak to your doctor.

Other side effects include headaches, bloating, and lower abdominal discomfort.

Some women feel that Utrogestan™ lowers their mood. The risk of this side effect is lower when compared with older, synthetic progestogen hormones (for example, in patches and tablets). If you experience this side effect and it doesn’t settle, please contact your doctor, as changing the progestogen or taking it in a different way can sometimes help.

What are the pros and cons of taking Utrogestan™?

There’s a link between progestogens and breast cancer. Utrogestan™ has been shown to be associated with a lower risk of breast cancer than the older synthetic progestogens (as in some tablets and patches.)

There’s a link between the risk of blood clots, stroke, and heart disease with some older progestogens, but there’s no such risk with Utrogestan.

More information can be found at:

• https://www.utrogestan.co.uk
• https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/352/pil
• In the patient information leaflet that comes with the Utrogestan™ capsules.