HRT prescribing and the Davina effect

Clinical Pharmacy Congress North – Congress highlights

National prescribing of transdermal and vaginal HRT and micronised progesterone increased while prescribing of oral HRT decreased after the documentary Sex, Myths and the Menopause, presented by Davina McCall, was aired, according to Dr Rosie Adsley (Assistant Professor in Pharmacy Practice, Nottingham University).

The Channel 4 documentary aired in May 2021 and provoked a large public response which was dubbed ‘the Davina effect’. The purpose of this study was to investigate prescribing trends for HRT before and after the documentary to examine whether the public discussion and awareness of menopause management had any impact on HRT prescribing.

Data on HRT prescribing over the period February 2019 to January 2024 were collected from the Open Prescribing Database.

The results showed that from April 2021 to January 2024:

• There was a 21% decrease in prescribing of oral conjugated equine oestrogens (CEE) and a 2% decrease in oral oestradiol prescribing
• Prescribing of transdermal combined HRT quadrupled with a sharp up-tick after May 2021
• Prescribing of transdermal oestrogen-only HRT more than tripled with a sharp up-tick after May 2021
• Prescribing of micronised progesterone capsules increased more than four-fold with a sharp up-tick after May 2021
• Prescribing of vaginal oestrogen-only HRT increased by 61% with a sharp up-tick after May 2021

Adsley R, Gonet D Mofunanya B. Prescribing trends of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) from 2019-2024 and ‘the Davina effect’. Clinical Pharmacy Congress North, November 2025

Photo: Dr Rosie Adsley