A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial on the Preventive Effect of Intravaginal Prasterone (DHEA, Intrarosa®) on Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections in Women With Genitourinary Syndrome of Menopause
Overview
- Phase
- Phase 3
- Intervention
- Prasterone
- Conditions
- Recurrent Urinary Tract Infection
- Sponsor
- Olivia Cardenas-Trowers, M.D.
- Locations
- 1
- Primary Endpoint
- Incidence of urinary tract infections (UTIs)
- Status
- Withdrawn
- Last Updated
- 4 years ago
Overview
Brief Summary
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are bothersome and more likely to occur in postmenopausal women. Frequent UTIs, as well as other problems with the urinary and genital systems such as painful sex and urinary frequency/urgency, are part of a symptom complex called genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM). Prasterone (Intrarosa®) is a man-made steroid that helps with painful sex in postmenopausal women. Because previous studies have shown prasterone to help with other GSM problems, this study was designed to investigate if prasterone used in the vagina decreases the number of UTIs in postmenopausal women.
Detailed Description
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are costly contributing to more than 8 million ambulatory visits (84% women) in the United States in 2007. Recurrent urinary tract infections (rUTIs) are UTIs diagnosed on at least 2 urine cultures in 6 months, or at least 3 in 1 year. The incidence of rUTIs increases in menopause with an estimated 10-15% of women \> 60 years old having rUTIs. rUTIs contribute to a constellation of bothersome genitourinary symptoms in some postmenopausal women called genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM). Thus, menopause, rUTIs, and GSM are intimately linked. Prasterone (Intrarosa®) is a synthetic version of the steroid, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), approved by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2016 for the treatment of moderate to severe dyspareunia due to GSM. Large, prospective studies have shown prasterone to safely decrease vaginal pH, decrease parabasal cells, increase superficial cells, and decrease symptoms related to atrophy like dyspareunia in women with GSM. Given prasterone's favorable treatment effects on some GSM symptoms, investigation of prasterone as a possible treatment option for rUTIs in the setting of GSM is warranted. This is a single center, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial comparing the efficacy of nightly intravaginal prasterone for 24 weeks to intravaginal placebo in decreasing rUTIs in women with GSM. The study hypothesis is that intravaginal prasterone decreases UTI incidence in women with GSM compared to placebo.
Investigators
Olivia Cardenas-Trowers, M.D.
Fellow Physician in Female Pelvic Medicine & Reconstructive Surgery
University of Louisville
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria
- •Women aged 18 years or older who are ≥ 1 year after spontaneous or surgical (bilateral oophorectomy) menopause
- •Presence of ≤ 5% of superficial cells on vaginal smear and vaginal pH \> 5.0
- •History of ≥ 2 UTIs in 6 months or ≥ 3 UTIs in 12 months (with documentation of a UTI confirmed on urine culture within the past 1 year)
- •Negative urine culture prior to treatment randomization
Exclusion Criteria
- •Known allergy/hypersensitivity to prasterone or its constituents
- •Contraindications to estrogen: acute thrombophlebitis, history of blood clotting disorder, and/or personal history of thromboembolic disorder associated with estrogen use
- •Known or suspected estrogen-dependent neoplasms or mammary, ovarian, cervical, or vaginal malignancies
- •Known congenital urologic or gynecologic abnormality
- •Chronic immunosuppression
- •Need for chronic catheterization
- •Vaginal bleeding of origin other than vaginal mucosal atrophy
- •Vaginal infection requiring treatment
- •Use of systemic hormone replacement therapy or estrogen within past 6 months
- •Use of topical estrogen within past 3 months
Arms & Interventions
Intravaginal prasterone insert
Nightly intravaginal prasterone insert for 24 weeks
Intervention: Prasterone
Intravaginal placebo insert (Witepsol H-15)
Nightly intravaginal placebo insert (Witepsol H-15, a mix of synthetic triglycerides) for 24 weeks
Intervention: Placebo
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Incidence of urinary tract infections (UTIs)
Time Frame: 24 weeks
Rate of UTIs during the study with UTI defined as at least one symptom of UTI (eg., dysuria, urinary frequency/urgency/incontinence, hematuria) and at least ≥10\^2 colony-forming units (CFUs)/mL of 1 or more uropathogens on urine culture.
Secondary Outcomes
- Mean days of antibiotic use(12 weeks and 24 weeks)