Plain-English explanations of the technical terms and legislation used in this document.
- British Menopause Society (BMS)
- The UK specialist society publishing menopause guidance for clinicians.
- Care Quality Commission (CQC)
- The independent regulator of health and social care in England.
- Clitoromegaly
- Enlargement of the clitoris, which may be permanent.
- Compounded preparation
- A medicine mixed to order by a pharmacy rather than a licensed product.
- Controlled drug
- A medicine controlled by law because it can be misused.
- Controlled Drugs Accountable Officer (CDAO)
- A senior officer responsible for the safe use of controlled drugs in certain health organisations.
- Controlled Drugs (Supervision of Management and Use) Regulations 2013
- The law creating accountable officers and local networks that monitor controlled drugs.
- Data Protection Act 2018
- UK law governing the use of personal data alongside the UK General Data Protection Regulation.
- Duty of candour
- The legal duty to be open and honest with patients when care goes wrong.
- Equality Act 2010
- The law protecting people from discrimination.
- FP10PCD
- The private prescription form for Schedules 2 and 3 controlled drugs; not used for testosterone.
- Free androgen index
- A calculated testosterone ratio not used to guide treatment in women.
- General Medical Council (GMC)
- The regulator of doctors in the UK.
- General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
- The regulator of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in Great Britain.
- General practitioner (GP)
- The patient's family doctor, who holds the main medical record.
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
- The fundamental standards CQC-registered providers must meet.
- Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
- Oestrogen, usually with a progestogen, used to relieve menopause symptoms.
- Human Medicines Regulations 2012
- The main UK law on licensing, prescribing and advertising medicines.
- Hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD)
- Persistently low sexual desire causing distress with no other explanation.
- Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS)
- An accurate laboratory method for measuring hormones.
- Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)
- The UK regulator of medicines and medical devices.
- Mental Capacity Act 2005
- The law on assessing and supporting people's ability to make decisions.
- Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001
- The regulations placing controlled drugs in schedules with different rules.
- National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)
- The body publishing national clinical guidelines in England.
- Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
- The regulator of nurses and midwives in the UK.
- Off-label use
- Using a licensed medicine in a way its licence does not cover.
- Premature ovarian insufficiency
- Loss of normal ovarian function before age 40.
- Schedule 4 Part 2
- The controlled drug category for anabolic steroids, including testosterone, with lighter controls.
- Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
- Antidepressants that can reduce sexual desire.
- Sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG)
- A blood protein that binds testosterone and affects how much is active.
- Special
- An unlicensed medicine made or imported for an individual patient's need.
- Therapeutic use exemption (TUE)
- Permission for an athlete to use a banned substance for a medical reason.
- UK Anti-Doping (UKAD)
- The national anti-doping body for UK sport.
- UK General Data Protection Regulation
- The UK's main data protection law.
- Unlicensed medicine
- A medicine with no UK marketing authorisation in the form supplied.
- Virilisation
- Development of male-type features such as a deeper voice.
- World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
- The international body listing substances banned in sport.
- Yellow Card scheme
- The MHRA system for reporting suspected side effects of medicines.