HRT (Hormone Replacement Therapy)

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) is the broader category of treatments that replace hormones the body is no longer producing in sufficient quantities. HRT includes commercial products and compounded formulations, and is prescribed for a variety of conditions, including menopause and hormone deficiencies.

HRT can be dispensed from a traditional pharmacy when the prescription matches a commercial product. It is prepared by a compounding pharmacy when the strength, ingredients, or delivery method requested by the prescriber is not commercially available.

Bioidentical hormone replacement therapy (BHRT) is a subset of HRT that uses hormones chemically identical to those produced by the body. Both HRT and BHRT prescriptions can be either commercial or compounded depending on the order.

HRT decisions are clinical and made by the prescriber. The compounding pharmacy's role is to prepare the prescription as written.