165
Views
3
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Commentary

Vulvovaginal atrophy management with a laser: the placebo effect or the conditioning Pavlov reflex

ORCID Icon & ORCID Icon
Pages 323-326 | Received 29 Dec 2021, Accepted 25 Feb 2022, Published online: 30 Mar 2022

References

  • Chedraui P, Pérez-López FR, Mendoza M, et al. Severe menopausal symptoms in middle-aged women are associated to female and male factors. Arch Gynecol Obstet. 2010;281(5):879–885.
  • Muhleisen AL, Herbst-Kralovetz MM. Menopause and the vaginal microbiome. Maturitas. 2016;91:42–50.
  • Mitro SD, Harlow SD, Randolph JF, et al. Chronic vulvar pain in a cohort of post-menopausal women: atrophy or vulvodynia? Womens Midlife Health. 2016;2(1):4.
  • Vieira-Baptista P, Marchitelli C, Haefner HK, et al. Deconstructing the genitourinary syndrome of menopause. Int Urogynecol J. 2017;28(5):675–679.
  • Pérez-López FR, Vieira-Baptista P, Phillips N, et al. Clinical manifestations and evaluation of postmenopausal vulvovaginal atrophy. Gynecol Endocrinol. 2021;37(8):740–745.
  • Fernández-Alonso AM, Alcaide-Torres J, Fernández-Alonso IM, et al. Application of the 21-item vulvovaginal symptoms questionnaire in postmenopausal Spanish women. Menopause. 2017;24(11):1295–1301.
  • Pérez-López FR, Fernández-Alonso AM, Trabalón-Pastor M, et al. Menopause risk assessment research group. Assessment of sexual function and related factors in mid-aged sexually active spanish women with the six-item female sex function index. Menopause. 2012;19(11):1224–1230.
  • Kao A, Binik YM, Amsel R, et al. Biopsychosocial predictors of postmenopausal dyspareunia: the role of steroid hormones, vulvovaginal atrophy, cognitive-emotional factors, and dyadic adjustment. J Sex Med. 2012;9(8):2066–2076.
  • Palma F, Volpe A, Villa P, et al. Vaginal atrophy of women in postmenopause. Results from a multicentric observational study: the AGATA study. Maturitas. 2016;83:40–44.
  • Baber RJ, Panay N, Fenton A. 2016 IMS recommendations on women's midlife health and menopause hormone therapy. Climacteric. 2016;19(2):109–150.
  • Donders GGG, Ruban K, Bellen G, et al. Pharmacotherapy for the treatment of vaginal atrophy. Expert Opin Pharmacother. 2019;20(7):821–835.
  • Hillard TC. Lasers in the era of evidence-based medicine. Climacteric. 2020;23(sup1):S6–S10.
  • Potter N, Panay N. Vaginal lubricants and moisturizers: a review into use, efficacy, and safety. Climacteric. 2021;24(1):19–24.
  • Slongo H, Lunardi ALB, Riccetto CLZ, et al. Microablative radiofrequency versus pelvic floor muscle training for stress urinary incontinence: a randomized controlled trial. Int Urogynecol J. 2022;33(1):53–64.
  • Sarmento AC, Fernandes FS, Marconi C, et al. Impact of microablative fractional radiofrequency on the vaginal health, microbiota, and cellularity of postmenopausal women. Clinics. 2020;75:e1750.
  • Pérez-López FR, Phillips N, Vieira-Baptista P, et al. Management of postmenopausal vulvovaginal atrophy: recommendations of the international society for the study of vulvovaginal disease. Gynecol Endocrinol. 2021;37(8):746–752.
  • PROSPERO CRD42021260719. Systematic review and meta-analysis on the effect of vaginal estrogen or laser on vulvovaginal atrophy. https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=260719
  • Cruz VL, Steiner ML, Pompei LM, et al. Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial for evaluating the efficacy of fractional CO2 laser compared with topical estriol in the treatment of vaginal atrophy in postmenopausal women. Menopause. 2018;25(1):21–28.
  • Dutra PFSP, Heinke T, Pinho SC, et al. Comparison of topical fractional CO2 laser and vaginal estrogen for the treatment of genitourinary syndrome in postmenopausal women: a randomized controlled trial. Menopause. 2021;28(7):756–763.
  • Politano CA, Costa-Paiva L, Aguiar LB, et al. Fractional CO2 laser versus promestriene and lubricant in genitourinary syndrome of menopause: a randomized clinical trial. Menopause. 2019;26(8):833–840.
  • Paraiso MFR, Ferrando CA, Sokol ER, et al. A randomized clinical trial comparing vaginal laser therapy to vaginal estrogen therapy in women with genitourinary syndrome of menopause: the VeLVET trial. Menopause. 2020;27(1):50–56.
  • Ruanphoo P, Bunyavejchevin S. Treatment for vaginal atrophy using microablative fractional CO2 laser: a randomized double-blinded sham-controlled trial. Menopause. 2020;27(8):858–863.
  • Cruff J, Khandwala S. A double-blind randomized sham-controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of fractional carbon dioxide laser therapy on genitourinary syndrome of menopause. J Sex Med. 2021;18(4):761–769.
  • Li FG, Maheux-Lacroix S, Deans R, et al. Effect of fractional carbon dioxide laser vs sham treatment on symptom severity in women with postmenopausal vaginal symptoms: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA. 2021;326(14):1381–1389.
  • Archer DF, Kimble TD, Lin FDY, et al. A randomized, multicenter, double-blind, study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of estradiol vaginal cream 0.003% in postmenopausal women with vaginal dryness as the most bothersome symptom. J Womens Health. 2018;27(3):231–237.
  • Tanmahasamut P, Jirasawas T, Laiwejpithaya S, et al. Effect of estradiol vaginal gel on vaginal atrophy in postmenopausal women: a randomized double-blind controlled trial. J Obstet Gynaecol Res. 2020;46(8):1425–1435.
  • Pavlov IP. Conditioned reflexes: an investigation of the physiological activity of the cerebral cortex. Translated and Edited by G. V. Anrep. London: Oxford University Press; 1927.
  • Bretas TLB, Issa MCA, Fialho SCAV, et al. Vaginal collagen I and III changes after carbon dioxide laser application in postmenopausal women with the genitourinary syndrome: a pilot study. Climacteric. 2022:25(2):186–194.
  • Salvatore S, Pitsouni E, Grigoriadis T, Zacharakis D, Pantaleo G, Candiani M, Athanasiou S. CO2 laser and the genitourinary syndrome of menopause: a randomized sham-controlled trial. Climacteric. 2021;24(2):187–193. doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/13697137.2020.1829584.
  • Liu M, Li F, Zhou Y, et al. Efficacy of CO2 laser treatment in postmenopausal women with vulvovaginal atrophy: a meta-analysis. Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 2021 Oct 8. doi: https://doi.org/10.1002/ijgo.13973.
  • Khamis Y, Abdelhakim AM, Labib K, et al. Vaginal CO2 laser therapy versus sham for genitourinary syndrome of menopause management: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Menopause. 2021;28(11):1316–1322.
  • Lensen S, Bell RJ, Carpenter JS, et al. A core outcome set for genitourinary symptoms associated with menopause: the COMMA (core outcomes in menopause) global initiative. Menopause. 2021;28(8):859–866.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.