Does estrogen have any real effect on voiding dysfunction in women?

For many years, estrogen has been used to treat lower urinary tract dysfunction in postmenopausal women. The data supporting this practice vary. Large multi-institutional studies have shown little role for systemic estrogens in the treatment of urinary incontinence. Vaginal estrogen preparations show superiority to systemic estrogens for the treatment of irritative voiding symptoms in meta-analysis, but there is significant study heterogeneity and the practice remains debatable. Data from randomized controlled trials support estrogen use in the prevention of recurrent urinary tract infections. This article reviews the relevant literature addressing the role of estrogen therapy in urinary incontinence, irritative voiding symptoms, and recurrent urinary tract infections. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.