Estring Side Effects
Serious Adverse Side Effects
Estring | Estradiol Vaginal Ring has some very serious adverse side effects associated with it, such as:
- Cardiovascular side effects such as heart disease and heart attacks
- Endocrine metabolic side effects such as breast cancer and hypercalcemia, or abnormal amounts of calcium in the blood
- Gastrointestinal side effects such as disorders of the gallbladder
- Hematological side effects such as venous thromboembolism, when a blood clot forms inside a vein
- Immunological side effects such as anaphylaxis, a deadly allergic reaction
- Neurological side effects such as stroke and dementia
- Ophthalmic side effects such as thrombosis of retinal vein, when a blood clot forms in the eye
- Reproductive side effects such as malignant tumor of the inner membrane of the uterus, and ovarian cancer
- Respiratory side effects such as pulmonary embolism, or the blockage of the main artery of the lung
Common Adverse Side Effects
More common and less severe adverse side effects from this drug include:
- Cardiovascular side effects such as fluid accumulation, or edema
- Dermatological side effects such as application site irritation, discoloration of the skin, more hair at site of application, loss of scalp hair, redness of the skin, and itching
- Endocrine metabolic side effects such as weight gain and increased body fluid retention
- Gastrointestinal side effects such as bloating, nausea and vomiting
- Neurological side effects such as headache
- Psychiatric side effects such as depression
- Reproductive side effects such as breast tenderness, menstrual disorders, vaginal discharge, pain or swelling of the breast, vaginal discomfort, and withdrawal bleeding
Warnings & Recalls for Estring
Black Box Warning
Estring | Estradiol Vaginal Ring has an associated “black box” warning attached to it that denotes the risk of endometrial cancer for women taking this drug. Cardiovascular risks and endometrial cancer risks are heightened when taking certain estrogens.
Contraindications
The contraindications associated with this drug that hinder a patient’s ability to take it include:
- Undiagnosed vaginal bleeding
- Known or suspected breast cancer
- Known or suspected estrogen-dependent tumor
- Active deep vein thrombosis
- Pulmonary embolism
- Active stroke
- Patients who’ve had heart attacks
- Known liver dysfunction
- Known hypersensitivity to this drug
- Pregnancy
Who Should Not Take This Drug
The patients with the following preexisting conditions should never take
Estring | Estradiol Vaginal Ring. These include:
- Breast cancer
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Dementia
- Addition of progestins to therapy
- Asthma
- Diabetes mellitus
- Epilepsy
- Migraines
- Porphyria
- Lupus
- Hepatic hemangiomas
- Arterial vascular disease
- Children should be kept away from this drug
- Cardiac or renal dysfunctions
- Endometriosis
- Residual post-hysterectomy
- Gallbladder disease
- Hereditary angioedema
- Hypertension
- Preexisting hypertriglyceridemia
- Hypocalcemia
- Preexisting hypoparathyroidism
- Hypothyroidism
- Impaired liver function or jaundice
- Men are usually dissuaded from taking this drug
- Ovarian cancer
- Prolongation of therapy with this drug
- Sunscreen use
- Patients who take tartrazine
- Vaginal infections
Estring Treatment and Use
Estring | Estradiol Vaginal Ring is used to treat vaginal dryness, burning, itching, difficult or painful urination and the sudden urge to urinate in women who are experiencing menopause. Its official FDA-labeled indications are for treating:
- Abnormal vasomotor function in women with menopause
- Atrophy of the vulva
- Vaginal atrophy
- Metastatic breast cancer
- Advanced cancer of prostate which is androgen-dependent
- Decreased estrogen levels
- Urethral atrophy
- Post-menopausal osteoporosis
Its non-FDA labeled indications are for:
- Male-to-female gender transition
- Menstrual migraine
- Mental distress
- Postpartum depression
- Urinary tract infection
Estring | Estradiol Vaginal Ring is marketed and manufactured by Pfizer. This drug comes in the form of a ring to line into the vaginal wall.
Please refer to the “warnings and recalls” tab to get the “black box” warning information for this drug.
How This Drug Works
The mechanism of action for Estring | Estradiol Vaginal Ring is that estrogens are known to regulate the transcription of limited numbers of genes and bind to nuclear receptors in tissues that are responsive to estrogen. Estrogens are also known to modulate pituitary secretions of gonadotropins and other hormones by the way of a negative feedback mechanism which reduces levels of these hormones that are present in menopausal women.
Other Names for Estring
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Generic Name
Lawsuits & Legal Information for Estring
Author:
Partha Choudhury
Posted on Oct 10, 2012
