Female Urology

The agency is working with companies to update the language on HRT to remove references to risks of cardiovascular disease, breast cancer, and probable dementia.

A. Lenore Ackerman, MD, PhD, discusses the renewed emphasis on symptom resolution over microbial eradication in the new AUA guideline for recurrent uUTI in women.

The AUA has released updated guidelines for recurrent UTIs in women, emphasizing patient-centered care, nonantibiotic options, and improved clinical judgment.

We recap notable headlines from last month in the benign urology space.

“We hope our findings reassure health professionals caring for postmenopausal women with a history of stroke,” says Kimia Ghias Haddadan, MD.

Aleece Fosnight, MSPAS, PA-C, CSC-S, CSE, IF, MSCP, HAES, emphasizes a careful, individualized approach to managing bladder and bowel symptoms in women with a history of disordered eating.

Aleece Fosnight, MSPAS, PA-C, emphasizes that any patient presenting with urinary incontinence or related symptoms should be evaluated for pelvic floor dysfunction.

On the urinary side, Fosnight prioritizes pelvic floor physical therapy as a first-line intervention for incontinence, citing evidence of significant symptom improvement.

"Major complications of ring pessaries are rare but present considerable challenges to surgeons and patients when they do occur," write E. Mackenzie Gibbs, MD, and Charles Lloyd Secrest, MD.

A recap of the FDA submissions and regulatory decisions in urology from July 2025.

Ashley G. Winter, MD, reflects on the need for FDA approved testosterone formulations in women, emphasizing that urologists are well-positioned to drive change in this space.

“Right now, it is our counseling against the warning label,” Winter emphasized.

Findlay notes that urinary diversion has increased over time, potentially due to functional decline and growing burdens on patients and caregivers.

Data showed that fracture risk rises briefly after menopausal hormone therapy discontinuation, then falls below never-users.

"We are not offering patients comprehensive management unless we consider hormone therapies," says Ashley G. Winter, MD.

The expanded labeling would enable the use of flibanserin to treat hypoactive sexual desire disorder in postmenopausal women.

In a panel meeting convened by the FDA, experts urged the agency to revise or remove the outdated boxed warning on hormone therapies for menopause.

Take a look back through some of the top stories from the first half of the year.

Oral sulopenem was approved by the FDA in October 2024 for the management of uUTIs.

"My goal [for] a lot of the advocacy that I do is that one day [patients] don't have to do our jobs for us," says Maria Uloko, MD.

"Patients are having a hard time getting diagnosed because physicians are leaving medical training and medical education without getting this solid curriculum around female sexual dysfunction," says Maria Uloko, MD.

Karyn S. Eilber, MD, discusses treatment of genitourinary syndrome of menopause.

The CELLEBRATE trial is aiming to provide additional evidence to support the safety and efficacy of iltamiocel.

"The black box warning affects that ability for them to get access to that critical drug, vaginal estrogen," says Yahir A. Santiago-Lastra, MD.

Among the guideline’s recommendations is the use of local low-dose vaginal estrogen as first-line therapy for GSM.