Menopause news

Vaginal laser improves vaginal health

19 August 2019

A number of private clinics now offer vaginal laser to treat symptoms of vaginal atrophy. Early reports have suggested beneficial effects but it has been felt that more research is required.

A team from Brazil now provide more evidence on the effect of fractional CO2 laser therapy. A randomised trial of 72 women compared the effects on measures of vaginal health from fractional CO2 laser therapy, vaginal estrogen cream and water based vaginal lubricant.

By week 14, vaginal health measures had improved to a greater extent in women who had had laser therapy than the other treatments, and after treatment there was a greater overall improvement in the laser group than the other groups.

For many women, vaginal atrophy, or genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM) is successfully treated with vaginal estrogen. For some, response may be inadequate or there may be reluctance to use vaginal estrogen because of medical history, even though systemic absorption is very low.For these women, vaginal laser may be worth considering, but more randomised trials with long-term follow up are still needed to establish effectiveness and safety.

Reference Politano C, Costa-Paiva L, Aguiar L et al. Fractional CO2 laser versus promestriene and lubricant in genitourinary syndrome of menopause: a randomized clinical trial. Menopause. 26(8):833–840, August 2019

See also our Vaginal Dryness page

< Go Back

<< News Index