ESTRIOL IN THE TREATMENT OF POSTMENOPAUSAL URGENCY - A MULTICENTER STUDY

Oestrogen deficiency in postmenopausal women is thought to be importan t in the genesis of lower urinary tract symptoms, in particular the 'u rge syndrome'. Evidence to support the use of oestrogen therapy in sym ptomatic postmenopausal women is, however, limited. Oestriol is a weak , naturally occurring oestrogen that may be beneficial to the urogenit al tissues without stimulating the endometrium. We have investigated t he use of oestriol in the treatment of postmenopausal sensory and moto r urge incontinence. Materials and methods: A double-blind, placebo-co ntrolled, randomised, multicentre study of 3 mg oral oestriol/day for 3 months in the treatment of women with urge incontinence was undertak en. Results and conclusions: Sixty-four women were recruited into the study. Although oestriol produced both subjective and objective improv ement in lower urinary tract function, it was not significantly better than placebo. Some of the difficulties of running a multicentre study were encountered.