NCT05472779

Periurethral vs Intravaginal Estrogen for Prevention of Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections

Periurethral vs Intravaginal Estrogen for Prevention of Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections: TAPER (Techniques of APplying Vaginal Estrogen for Prevention of Recurrent Urinary Tract Infections) Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 114 (actual)
• Sponsor: Stephanie Wang Zuo · Academic / Other
• Sex: Female
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Due to rising antibiotic resistance, there has been a focus on non-antibiotic prophylactic measures for postmenopausal patients with recurrent urinary tract infections (rUTI), one of which is the safe and efficacious option of vaginal estrogen therapy. Standard application of vaginal estrogen cream entails intravaginal application of the cream twice a week, but some providers counsel patients with rUTI to apply a small, pea-sized amount to the periurethral area. This ideally reduces the amount of vaginal estrogen used while attaining a similar effect. However, to date, there is no data to prove that the periurethral technique of application is similar or non-inferior to intravaginal application in preventing UTI.

Conditions

• Recurrent Urinary Tract Infection

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	Periurethral application of estradiol cream	The experimental group will apply estradiol cream in a different location (periurethral) and at a smaller dose (0.5 gram) compared to the control group.
DRUG	Intravaginal application of estradiol cream	The control group will apply 1 gram estradiol cream intravaginally using an applicator.

Timeline

• Start date: 2023-01-03
• Primary completion: 2025-06-15
• Completion: 2025-06-25
• First posted: 2022-07-25
• Last updated: 2025-07-08

Locations

4 sites across 1 country: United States

Regulatory

• FDA-regulated drug study