Estrogen tablets aid vaginal dryness

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Tablets containing low-dose estrogen can help ease the vaginal discomfort that often comes with menopause, a study shows. After women go through menopause, declining estrogen levels cause a gradual thinning in the tissue of the vagina. This can lead to inflammation known as atrophic vaginitis, which causes symptoms such as dryness, irritation and pain during sex. Estrogen replacement is one therapy for the condition, but because of the health risks of oral hormone replacement, many women want an alternative. One alternative is estrogen-containing tablets that are inserted directly into the vagina, which limits the risk of side effects. For the new study, researchers looked at the effectiveness of vaginal tablets containing low-dose estrogen -- either 10 or 25 micrograms of a form of the hormone called estradiol. They randomly assigned 230 postmenopausal women to use the higher- or lower-dose estrogen tablet or a placebo (inactive) tablet twice a week for 12 weeks. After that, all study participants were given the option of continuing on the higher estrogen dose for a year. In the first phase of the study, both estrogen doses improved symptoms of vaginal dryness, irritation and discomfort, the researchers report in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology. The benefits tended to be greater, however, with the higher dose. Moreover, of the women who continued with the therapy, the overall improvements were still apparent at the one-year mark, according to the researchers, led by Dr. Gloria Bachmann of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in New Brunswick. The researchers found no serious side effects during the year-long follow-up. Side effects possibly related to the estrogen treatment included headache, back pain and abdominal pain, which have been seen in other studies. The findings, according to Bachmann's team, suggest that low-dose vaginal estrogen can safely ease symptoms of atrophic vaginitis over the long term. The study received funding from Novo Nordisk, a Denmark-based pharmaceutical company that makes the estrogen tablets used in the study.