GUIDELINES   Free access

Minerva Ginecologica 2019 October;71(5):345-52

DOI: 10.23736/S0026-4784.19.04469-1

Copyright © 2019 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Joint recommendations for the diagnosis and treatment of vulvo-vaginal atrophy in women in the peri- and post-menopausal phases from the Società Italiana per la Menopausa (SIM) and the Società Italiana della Terza Età (SIGiTE)

Angelo CAGNACCI ¹ ✉, Mario GALLO ², Marco GAMBACCIANI ³, Stefano LELLO ⁴ on behalf of the Società Italiana della Menopausa (SIM) and the Società Italiana di Ginecologia della Terza Età (SIGiTE) 

¹ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, San Martino Hospital, Genoa, Italy; ² Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Presidio Ospedaliero Riunito di Ciriè-Lanzo, Ciriè, Turin, Italy; ³ Menopause Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pisa University Hospital, Pisa, Italy; ⁴ Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, A. Gemelli Polyclinic, Rome, Italy
A correction to this article is available online at https://www.doi.org/10.23736/S0026-4784.19.04515-3

Herein, joint recommendations for diagnosis and treatment of vulvo-vaginal atrophy (VVA) in women in the peri- and post-menopausal phases from the Società Italiana per la Menopausa (SIM) and the Società Italiana della Terza Età (SIGiTE) are presented. The recommendations are aimed at all healthcare personnel caring for women in the menopausal transition or postmenopausal phase, and are also intended to raise awareness of VVA. Recent data clearly indicate VVA is a highly prevalent condition among postmenopausal women, and that the vast majority of women with VVA are not adequately treated. In reality, diagnosis of VVA is simple and largely clinical. Many types of treatments are available for VVA, ranging from preventive education measures to local non-hormonal therapies, local agents that modulate hormonal receptors and systemic as well as laser therapy and radiofrequency. Regardless of the therapeutic approach adopted, greater communication between the physician and the woman with VVA should be actively encouraged. This is also in light of the difficulty of talking about the VVA and related disorders. Greater communication also encourages adequate therapy and thus minimizes the impact of VVA on the quality of life of the woman and her partner.

KEY WORDS: Atrophy; Postmenopause; Diagnosis; Guideline; Quality of life