Results of a 5 years prospective study of estriol succinate treatment in patients with climacteric complaints.

In a prospective study 911 patients were treated over a period of 5 years (M = 2.2) or a total of 2007 treatment years with estriol succinate oral (Synapause, 2-12 mg per day). The treatment was very effective in the removal of all typical climacteric complaints and of the atrophic genital changes caused by estrogen deficiency. Subjective side effects were seldom seen and without practical importance for the treatment. Objective, grave side effects were only few: one superficial phlebo-thrombosis, 2 cases of thrombophlebitis, one carcinoma in situ of the portio vaginalis uteri and 2 mammary cancers were seen. The carcinoma had probably no causal relationship to the treatment. Embolies, myocardial infarctions, cerebrovascular and liver-gall bladder complications did not occur during treatment. The rate of uterine bleedings was low. The incidence of all complications was not increased by estriol succinate; but was even lower than expected. Endometrial and ovarian cancers were not seen. Estriol succinate is accordingly a very effective and well tolerated preparation against climacteric complaints, exerting no significant side effects. It is remarkable that it does not proliferate the endometrium when given in one dose a day. Estriol succinate can therefore be characterized as the estrogen to be favoured for the treatment of postclimacteric women, who do not want to have uterine bleedings any longer.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)