Fight Against BV

How Do I Get Diagnosed for Bacterial Vaginosis?

admin — Wed, 05 May 2010 11:15:21 +0000

There are no complicated procedures to diagnose bacterial vaginosis.

The very first thing the doctor does is to have a visual vagina examination to detect the signs of bacterial vaginosis. There are some women who are shy about this and might refuse the doctor to do so.

The next test is to take some vagina fluids for chemical testing in the laboratory. This is to determine the pH level of the vaginal fluids and to determine what bacterias are found in it.

These tests wouldn’t take long as more doctors have the needed requirement in their premises.

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

What Are The Signs and Symptoms of Bacterial Vaginosis?

admin — Tue, 04 May 2010 22:00:35 +0000

Bacterial vaginosis usually occurs with very obvious signs and symptoms for most women.

There are some rare cases where the women did not develop any signs and symptoms and only to have it detected during her annual checkup at the ob-gyn. If you don’t give the ob-gyn a visit at least once annually, it is time to start doing so.

Some of the most common bacterial vaginosis signs and symptoms include :

Foul and fishy vaginal odor. This usually gets worse right after a sexual intercourse. You can see it from your partner’s facial expression if you don’t smell it yourself. (Further Reading : Are You Ashamed of The Fishy Odor Down There?)
Burning and itching sensation around the outside of the vagina. (Further Reading : Cope With Irritations Caused By Bacterial Vaginosis With These 5 Simple Ways)
Grayish or white vaginal discharge which are more than normal.

It is important to take note that all the symptoms above can happen at the same time.

What Are The Health Complications of Bacterial Vaginosis?

admin — Tue, 04 May 2010 06:58:05 +0000

Usually bacterial vaginosis do not cause much health complications if it is identified and treated right from the beginning. There is a risk the woman might be vulnerable to other health complications due to bacterial vaginosis if it is left untreated for a prolonged time.

The most important thing to note is that bacterial vaginosis do not cause death.

Some of the complications of bacterial vaginosis are :

Risk of having Pelvic Inflammatory disease and other pelvic related diseases (Further Reading : The Relationship Between PID and BV)
Increased complications during pregnancy (Further Reading : Can Bacterial Vaginosis Prevent Pregnancy?
Higher risk to be vulnerable to sexually transmitted diseases like gonorrhea, Chlamydia (Further Reading : Is Bacterial Vaginosis A STD?, Bacterial Vaginosis Complications That Your Gynecologist Didn’t Tell You)

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

What Are The Risks Involved If I Have Bacterial Vaginosis During Pregnancy?

admin — Mon, 03 May 2010 15:45:06 +0000

There are cases where the mother was having bacterial vaginosis while she was pregnant and it resulted in either premature birth or low birth weight for the baby and possibly urinary tract infection (UTI) after delivery.

There are also some inconclusive studies that showed a link between bacterial vaginosis with second trimester miscarriage.

However, medical experts do not know exactly why only some women who suffers from bacterial vaginosis ended up giving birth prematurely while some others don’t.

The U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all pregnant mothers be checked for bacterial vaginosis during the early stages of pregnancy and treated accordingly, if needed. (Further Reading : Can Bacterial Vaginosis Prevent Pregnancy?)

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

How Can I Get Bacterial Vaginosis?

admin — Sun, 02 May 2010 22:31:26 +0000

There are many ways you can contract bacterial vaginosis. However, through science and research, it remains inconclusive of what exactly causes bacterial vaginosis.

The main argument is that bacterial vaginosis occurs due to the imbalance of bacteria found in the vaginal flora. There are the good bacteria called Lactobacillus and bad bacteria called Anaerobes. Both these bacteria live in a perfect balance to form a healthy vaginal flora. However, when the bad bacteria, Anaerobes overpopulates the good bacteria, Lactobacillus , then bacterial vaginosis occurs.

Even though bacterial vaginosis is the most common vaginal infection today, there are still a lot unknowns about it throughout the medical communities worldwide. There are questions like how exactly the Anaerobes (bad bacteria) plays a role in causing bacterial vaginosis.

There are also arguments about bacterial vaginosis is caused by having several sexual partners, but research results proved inconclusive until today.

However, you can greatly reduce your risk of getting bacteria vaginosis if you practice the general steps below.

Have only one sexual partner at any single time. This includes your partner as well. (Further Reading : How Oral Sex Could Easily Cause Bacterial Vaginosis)
Do not douche if possible. Otherwise limit it to once a week. Vaginal douching upsets the perfect vaginal flora balance which could be a breeding groud for bad bacterias and eventually lead to BV. (Further Reading : What Is A Healthy Vaginal Flora And How to Have One, How Lactobacillus Acidophilus Can Fight Bacterial Vaginosis)
Make sure that you know what you are doing if you’re using intrauterine device (IUD) for contraception. Find out more about it’s potential risks because having a IUD inside your uterus could lead to bacterial vaginosis.

There is a very significant link between one’s sexual activities and bacterial vaginosis. But it is not proven through research yet.

This is because a high percentage of women who suffers from bacterial vaginosis are very active sexually.

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

Do I Need to Routinely Test for Bacterial Vaginosis During My Pregnancy?

admin — Sun, 02 May 2010 04:57:26 +0000

Yes and no.

It depends on certain circumstances, whether you are first time pregnant or subsequent pregnancy.

If by any chance your earlier pregnancy resulted in a premature or low birth rate baby delivery, then it is strongly advisable that you go for a bacterial vaginosis test regardless of whether the signs and symptoms are present or not.

It is better to be safe than sorry for the second time.

If you have any other vaginal infections prior to your pregnancy (including first timers), then you are advised to go for the test.

However, if you are a healthy woman prior to pregnancy who do not have any history of vaginal infections, or you do not show any signs and symptoms of bacterial vaginosis during your pregnancy, or you’ve never had any complications during your previous pregnancy, then it is not required to do the testing.

If you are still worried and unconvinced, then you should trust your instinct and got for the tests.

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

How Can I Prevent Bacterial Vaginosis?

admin — Sat, 01 May 2010 12:57:18 +0000

Here are some common steps to prevent bacterial vaginosis and lower your risk of being infected.

Abstain from having sex is the best way to prevent bacterial vaginosis, other vaginal infections and STDs.
Limit the number of sex partners. It is not advisable to have more than one sex partner at any one time as this will greatly disrupt the balance of the vaginal flora. (Further Reading : How Oral Sex Could Easily Cause Bacterial Vaginosis)
Do not douche during bath, or limit it to once a week. Douching will cause the bacterias found in the vagina to go right up into the uterus and fallopian tubes which might cause other diseases.
Always practice healthy vaginal hygiene. (Further Reading : 7 Steps to Proper Vaginal Hygiene After Sexual Intercourse, 18 Steps Towards A Healthy Vaginal Hygiene)
Wear the right type of underwear and change them daily. (Further Reading : Does Wearing The Wrong Material of Underwear Expose You to Bacterial Vaginosis?
Keep a healthy daily diet. (Further Reading : How to Have A Healthy Daily Diet That Keeps Bacterial Vaginosis Away)

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

Is Bacterial Vaginosis Common Among Women?

admin — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 21:57:21 +0000

Most women are familiar with vaginal yeast infection rather than bacterial vaginosis. This has lead a lot of women to assume that vaginal yeast infection is the most common vaginal infection.

But the truth is, it is not.

In fact, bacterial vaginosis is more common among women compared to vaginal yeast infection. This is especially true for women who are in the childbearing age bracket, usually 20s to 30s and sexually active.

In the United States alone, it is estimated that around 16% of women suffer from bacterial vaginosis during their pregnancy stage. Studies also showed that 1 in every 4 women will suffer from bacterial vaginosis at some stage of their life.

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

I Have Bacterial Vaginosis. Does My Partner Needs Treatment Too?

admin — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 04:35:01 +0000

It depends on the gender of your sex partner.

If your partner is a man, he does not need any bacterial vaginosis treatment. Even though a man cannot suffer from bacterial vaginosis, he can be the carrier of it. One of the common ways bacterial vaginosis is transferred between women via a man is that he has oral sex with both the women, and one of the woman has bacterial vaginosis.

If your partner is a woman, then both of you needs to be treated if any one if diagnosed with bacterial vaginosis because it could spread easily through oral sex or physical contact of the vagina.

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ

What Treatments Are Available for Bacterial Vaginosis?

admin — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 13:02:09 +0000

There are 2 types of bacterial vaginosis treatments widely used today. Antibiotics and home remedies.

First time sufferers are usually given antibiotics such as metronidazole (Flagyl) or Clindamycin. They are usually prescribed in the form of vaginal cream or you can also opt for oral medications for these.

The purpose of antibiotics is to kill off all the good and bad bacterias found in the vaginal flora and hopefully bacterial vaginosis will go away. This usually works well for first time suffers.

But there are a lot of cases where the woman complained about recurring bacterial vaginosis after the first one was cured, usually about 1-2 months earlier. This is the time where antibiotics will not work as effectively as it was before which leads us to the second kind of bacterial vaginosis treatment – home remedies.

Home remedies are becoming popular these days because of effectiveness. They range from yogurt, liquid probiotics, folic acid supplements, apple cider vinegar and oatmeal poultice.

Bacterial Vaginosis FAQ