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This is good info from ACOG, American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists:
“Why does estrogen loss cause UTIs? Estrogen helps tissues in your vagina and urethra stay elastic and moist. Estrogen loss can thin these tissues and cause dryness, irritation, and other changes that set the stage for UTIs.
For example, estrogen loss weakens the muscles of your urethra. This makes it easier for bacteria to enter your urethra and move up to your bladder.
Estrogen also raises the level of healthy bacteria that normally live in your vagina and bladder. Healthy bacteria help fight off infection-causing bacteria. After menopause, low estrogen means you have less healthy bacteria to help prevent infections.”
AIs leave us with no, or almost none, estrogen. It is very unfortunate when specialists only look at the top, highest frequency, side effects that are listed by the manufacturer.
Link to article:
https://www.acog.org/womens-health/experts-and-stories/the-latest/utis-after-menopause-why-theyre-common-and-what-to-do-about-them#:~:text=Why%20does%20estrogen%20loss%20cause,the%20muscles%20of%20your%20urethra.Replies to "This is good info from ACOG, American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists: “Why does estrogen loss..."
Prior to my lumpectomy, I was using Estradiol every couple of days because i have a history of frequent UTIs. The Estradiol was applied externally every couple of nights before bed. My oncologist directed me to stop using it, obviously because it contained estrogen. That was May 2022 when I started on anastrozole and I was good for awhile but late last year, had a couple of utis right in a row. In response to my concern about not being able to use it, my PA recommended coconut oil. I now use it every night and although one uti did sneak in, I’ve been good otherwise. You can google and see that coconut oil does offer protection..
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I’m wondering if taking probiotics would help prevent these infections for those of us with low estrogen.