when to refer for menopause-centered care at AHN

AHN’s Midlife Women’s Associates is closing a longstanding gap in care for perimenopause- and menopause-aged women by providing dedicated, individualized treatment for common — yet disruptive — symptoms that affect quality of life.

Despite an estimated 80–90% of women experiencing menopausal physical or physiological symptoms during the menopause transition,* nearly half delay seeking care for more than six months.** Meanwhile, primary care and OB-GYN providers managing high patient volumes and competing demands often have limited time to fully address these complex, non-acute concerns.

“Women’s health has long focused most heavily on reproductive care,” said Helana Pietragallo, MD, AHN OB-GYN. “At Midlife Women Associates, we’ve intentionally created a space that validates and specializes in the physiological changes of the menopausal stage — reassuring patients that their symptoms are treatable, not something they must simply endure.”

Building the bridge with collaborative care

AHN’s Midlife Women’s Associates team is comprised of four physicians and two nurse practitioners who specialize exclusively in midlife women’s health. The program addresses a wide spectrum of menopausal symptoms including vasomotor issues, sleep disturbances, mood changes, genitourinary symptoms, sexual dysfunction, menstrual irregularities, vulvar conditions, and concerns related to bone and breast health.

Designed to complement a patient’s existing care, our approach allows for extended, focused visits to assess symptoms and develop personalized treatment plans. Treatment plans may incorporate lifestyle adjustments, pharmaceutical or non-pharmaceutical interventions, hormonal or non-hormonal therapies, and surgical interventions when appropriate.

Given the systemic effects of declining estrogen, our team often collaborates with specialists, including:

• Pelvic floor therapists.
• Cardiologists.
• Endocrinologists.
• Oncologists.
• Psychiatrists.
• Psychologists.
• Sleep specialists.

How to refer

Referrals are encouraged when standard interventions have not yielded improvement, or when patients seek a second opinion. To make a referral, call 412-854-7140. Patients may also call the same number to make an appointment.

*Source: Menopausal Symptoms and Their Management. NIH.gov.

**Source: Treatment and resource utilization for menopausal symptoms in the United States: a retrospective review of real-world evidence from US electronic health records. NIH.gov.