Vaginal Diseases

URL of this page: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vaginaldiseases.html

Symptoms such as vaginal itching, burning, pain and discharge are some of the most common reasons that women seek medical care. Often, the problem is vaginitis, an inflammation of the vagina. In women of childbearing age, the most common cause is a bacterial infection. The main symptom is a smelly vaginal discharge, but some women have no symptoms. The treatment is antibiotics.

Other infections that can cause vaginitis include trichomoniasis and yeast infections. Some other causes of vaginal symptoms, including vaginal bleeding, are sexually transmitted diseases, vaginal cancer and vulvar cancer.

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Start Here

    * JAMA Patient Page: Vaginal Symptoms(American Medical Association) - http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/291/11/1406.pdf
      Also available in Spanish http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/data/291/11/1406/DC1/1

Diagnosis/Symptoms

    * ColposcopyInteractive Tutorial(Patient Education Institute) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/colposcopy/htm/index.htm
      Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/colposcopyspanish/htm/index.htm
    * Genital Problems in Women(American Academy of Family Physicians) - http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/tools/symptom/537.printerview.html
    * Vaginal pH: Home-Use Tests(Center for Devices and Radiological Health) - http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/oivd/homeuse-vaginal.html

Prevention/Screening

    * Understanding Abnormal Pap Test Results(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.acog.org/publications/patient_education/bp161.cfm

Specific Conditions

    * Bacterial Vaginosis(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) - http://www.cdc.gov/std/BV/STDFact-Bacterial-Vaginosis.htm
      Also available in Spanish http://www.cdc.gov/std/Spanish/STDFact-Bacterial-Vaginosis-s.htm
    * NewBacterial VaginosisFrom the National Institutes of Health(National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/topics/bacterialVaginosis/
    * Vaginal Anomalies: Vaginal Agenesis(American Urological Association) - http://urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=06&topic=150
      Also available in Spanish http://urologyhealth.org/espanol/espanol.cfm?topic=150
    * Vaginal Atrophy(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/vaginal-atrophy/DS00770/METHOD=print&DSECTION=all
    * Vaginal Dryness(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/vaginal-dryness/DS00550/DSECTION=all&METHOD=print
    * Vaginal Yeast InfectionFrom the National Institutes of Health(National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/topics/vaginalYeast/
    * VaginitisFrom the National Institutes of Health(National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases) - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/topics/vaginitis/

Related Issues

    * Douching(National Women's Health Information Center) - http://womenshealth.gov/faq/douching.cfm
      Also available in Spanish http://womenshealth.gov/espanol/preguntas/douche.htm
    * Sexual Health: Genital Itching(Cleveland Clinic Foundation) - http://my.clevelandclinic.org/disorders/sexually_transmitted_disease_std/hic_sexual_health_genital_itching.aspx

Health Check Tools

    * Vaginal Discharge(DSHI Systems) - http://www.freemd.com/vaginal-discharge/visit-virtual-doctor.htm
    * Vaginal Itching(DSHI Systems) - http://www.freemd.com/vaginal-itching/visit-virtual-doctor.htm
    * Vaginal Pain(DSHI Systems) - http://www.freemd.com/vaginal-pain/visit-virtual-doctor.htm
    * Vaginal Sores(DSHI Systems) - http://www.freemd.com/vaginal-sores/visit-virtual-doctor.htm

Tutorials

    * Colposcopy(Patient Education Institute) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/colposcopy/htm/index.htm
      Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/colposcopyspanish/htm/index.htm

Clinical Trials

    * ClinicalTrials.gov: Vaginal DiseasesFrom the National Institutes of Health(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Vaginal+Diseases%22
    * ClinicalTrials.gov: VaginitisFrom the National Institutes of Health(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Vaginitis%22
    * ClinicalTrials.gov: Vaginosis, BacterialFrom the National Institutes of Health(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/condition=%22Vaginosis,+Bacterial%22

Research

    * NewFactors Related to Bacterial Vaginosis That Persists or Occurs Again after Treatment in Women Who Have Sex with Women(American College of Physicians) - Links to PDF - http://www.annals.org/cgi/reprint/149/1/I-30.pdf

Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

    * Article: Screening for bacterial vaginosis in pregnancy to prevent preterm delivery. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19405414&tool=MedlinePlus
    * Article: Current views on etiology, diagnosis and the treatment of pain... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19323058&tool=MedlinePlus
    * Article: The use of local 17beta-oestradiol treatment for improving vaginal symptoms... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19215691&tool=MedlinePlus
    * Vaginal Diseases -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=vaginal+diseases[majr]+NOT+vaginal+neoplasms[majr]+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+(jsubsetk[text]+OR+review[pt]+OR+guideline[pt]+OR+clinical+trial[pt]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt])+NOT+(letter[pt]+OR+editorial[pt])&doptcmdl=summary&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus

Directories

    * ACOG's Physician Directory(American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - http://www.acog.org/member-lookup/disclaimer.cfm

Organizations

    * American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists - http://www.acog.org/
    * National Institute of Allergy and Infectious DiseasesFrom the National Institutes of Health - http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/
    * National Institute of Child Health and Human DevelopmentFrom the National Institutes of Health - http://www.nichd.nih.gov/

Children

    * Vaginal Anomalies: Cloacal Anomalies(American Urological Association) - http://www.urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=06&topic=148
      Also available in Spanish http://urologyhealth.org/espanol/espanol.cfm?topic=148
    * Vaginal Anomalies: Congenital Vaginal Obstruction(American Urological Association) - http://urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=06&topic=149
      Also available in Spanish http://urologyhealth.org/espanol/espanol.cfm?topic=149
    * Vaginal Anomalies: Fusion and Duplication(American Urological Association) - http://urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=06&topic=151
      Also available in Spanish http://urologyhealth.org/espanol/espanol.cfm?topic=151
    * Vaginal Anomalies: Urogenital Sinus(American Urological Association) - http://www.urologyhealth.org/adult/index.cfm?cat=06&topic=152
      Also available in Spanish http://urologyhealth.org/espanol/espanol.cfm?topic=152

Teenagers

    * Are Changes in My Vaginal Discharge OK?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/girls/vdischarge2.html
      Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/vdischarge2_esp.html
    * Breast and Pelvic Exams(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/girls/obgyn.html
      Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/sexual/obgyn_esp.html
    * Feeling Fresh(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/girls/feminine_hygiene.html
      Also available in Spanish http://kidshealth.org/teen/en_espanol/cuerpo/feminine_hygiene_esp.html
    * I've Never Had My Period, So What Is This Discharge?(Nemours Foundation) - http://kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/girls/vdischarge.html

You may also be interested in these MedlinePlus related pages:

    * Sexually Transmitted Diseases - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/sexuallytransmitteddiseases.html
    * Vaginal Bleeding - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vaginalbleeding.html
    * Vaginal Cancer - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vaginalcancer.html
    * Vulvar Cancer - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vulvarcancer.html
    * Vulvar Disorders - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vulvardisorders.html
    * Yeast Infections - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/yeastinfections.html
    * Female Reproductive System - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/femalereproductivesystem.html
    * Women - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/women.html

Vaginal Diseases - Multiple Languages - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/languages/vaginaldiseases.html

Date last updated: May 20 2009
Topic last reviewed: May 22 2009