Epidemiology of vaginitis

Article Abstract:

The epidemiology is reviewed of the three main causes of vaginitis (inflammation of the vagina) in Scandinavia and the US: candidiasis, trichomoniasis and bacterial vaginosis. Vaginitis, an ancient disease described by Hippocrates, is still a common problem that accounts for more than 10 million office visits to physicians each year. The incidence of candidiasis (caused by Candida organisms, which are fungi) in this country has almost doubled in the last decade, and is currently at approximately 25 percent. An increasing proportion of these infections are caused by species that are not C. albicans, formerly the most common cause. Trichomoniasis, caused by Trichomonas organisms, appeared to increase by 40 percent between 1966 and 1988. The largest number of cases of this disorder is in the South and the smallest number in the West. Black women seek treatment for trichomoniasis about four times as often as white women, and the disease is most common in women under 30 years of age. Bacterial vaginosis (BV), which is diagnosed from clinical findings involving signs and symptoms, vaginal pH, and results from microscopic analysis, was found in one study of several thousand patients at a sexually transmitted disease clinic to have a prevalence of 17.7 percent (compared with gonorrhea, whose prevalence was 24.4 percent). Patients with BV did not cluster into any age, geographic, or racial group. The epidemiology of these disorders in Scandinavia is also summarized. Trichomoniasis and gonorrhea have decreased steeply in prevalence during the last 10 years in both countries. Candidal vaginitis, on the other hand, is increasing worldwide. BV is the main type of vaginal infection in the US. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Scandinavia, Demographic aspects, Vaginosis, Trichomoniasis

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Chronic fungal vaginitis: the value of cultures

Article Abstract:

Culturing fungal infections of the vagina may allow doctors to prescribe the correct drug for the particular infection and avoid creating more drug-resistant strains of fungus. In the past, most fungal infections of the vagina were caused by the yeast Candida (C.) albicans. Researchers cultured samples from 74 patients who had recurrent vaginal fungal infections. Cultures confirmed that 32.5% of infections were caused by fungi other than C. albicans. The drug fluconazole was used to treat all patients, providing short-term cures of patients with C. albicans. Fluconazole cured only 25% of patients with infections other than C. albicans. Treating these other infections with fluconazole may promote drug resistance among these organisms.

Usage, Cultures (Biology)

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Treatment of complicated Candida vaginitis: comparison of single and sequential doses of fluconazole

Article Abstract:

Women with severe yeast infections may benefit from two doses of fluconazole given three days apart. This was the conclusion of researchers who studies 556 women with severe or recurring Candida vaginal infections.

Dosage and administration, Fluconazole

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