Efficacy of estradiol vaginal cream in postmenopausal women.

In a double-blind parallel study daily intravaginal administration of conjugated estrogen cream and estradiol cream for 14 days relieved vasomotor and vaginal postmenopausal symptoms in 29 postmenopausal women. By day 14, therapy with the estradiol vaginal cream resulted in plasma estrone and estradiol levels closer to those in premenopausal women than therapy with the conjugated estrogen cream. The extent of improvement and final estradiol plasma levels in the estradiol vaginal-cream group correlated. There was no correlation with severity of symptoms or estradiol plasma level at baseline. The metabolism of the conjugated estrogen cream might account for absence of correlation between improvement and final estradiol plasma levels in the conjugated vaginal-cream group.