Frequently asked questions
Questions about the licensed menopause symptom scales, appointment preparation, HRT reviews and health data privacy — answered plainly, with sources.
About the licensed symptom scales
Two licensed instruments come up constantly in this space: a 21-item questionnaire and an 11-item questionnaire, both developed for research and clinical use and both requiring a commercial licence HormoneLog does not hold. What the scales are, in full.
About tracking and diagnosis
No app, including HormoneLog, can diagnose perimenopause or menopause. Diagnosis is a clinical judgement that depends on your history, and NICE guideline NG23's position is that in otherwise healthy women over 45 with typical symptoms, it can be made on symptoms without laboratory tests.
About HRT reviews
NICE NG23 recommends a review at 3 months after starting or changing hormone therapy to assess efficacy and tolerability, then annually after that.
About privacy
A 2023 review of menopause apps in BMC Women's Health found 32 percent indicated third-party data sharing and only 7 percent offered two-factor authentication. Separately, the FTC settled with a period-tracking app in 2021 over sharing sensitive health data after promising privacy. Read the full privacy guide.
This is general information, not medical advice. HormoneLog is a tracking tool, not a diagnostic or treatment device, and nothing here can tell you whether your symptoms are normal, what they mean, or what you should do about them. Those are conversations for a clinician who knows your history.
About HormoneLog
HormoneLog is an iOS app from Baker Ventures LLC for tracking perimenopause and menopause symptoms and keeping an HRT record: what you took, at what dose, from when, and what changed afterwards. It is built for the appointment, where "it has been bad lately" is worth far less than a dated record of frequency and severity. The app is in development.
HormoneLog is a record-keeping tool. It does not diagnose, does not score you, and makes no claim about symptom relief. The guides on this site link to NICE, the NHS, the Menopause Society and peer-reviewed sources, and say plainly where the evidence is thin. Everything here is free and needs no account.
Questions and answers
What is the 21-item menopause symptom scale?
A questionnaire developed by a UK researcher, first published in 1976 and standardised in a 1998 paper in Maturitas. Items are rated from not at all to extremely and cover psychological, somatic and vasomotor domains plus a sexuality item.
What is the 11-item menopause symptom scale?
A self-administered questionnaire developed in Germany in the 1990s. Each item is rated 0 to 4 across psychological, somato-vegetative and urogenital subscales. It has been translated into more than 25 languages.
Can a symptom score tell me whether I am in perimenopause?
No. These questionnaires measure and track reported symptoms. They do not diagnose anything. Whether your symptoms indicate perimenopause is a clinical judgement that depends on your history, and it belongs with a clinician.
Do I need a blood test to be diagnosed with perimenopause?
NICE guideline NG23 recommends diagnosing perimenopause without laboratory tests in otherwise healthy women over 45 with menopausal symptoms, based on vasomotor symptoms and irregular periods. Practice varies by country and by individual circumstance.
How often should HRT be reviewed?
NICE NG23 recommends a review at 3 months to assess efficacy and tolerability, then annually.
Do menopause apps share health data?
Some do. A 2023 review of menopause apps in BMC Women's Health found 32% indicated third-party data sharing, and only 7% offered two-factor authentication. Separately, the FTC settled with a period-tracking app in 2021 over sharing sensitive health data after promising privacy.
Is HormoneLog available yet?
Not yet. It is in development. The guides here are free and useful on their own.
HormoneLog. “Frequently asked questions.” Baker Ventures LLC, September 8, 2026. https://hormonelog.bakerventuresstudio.com/faq/