Bacterial Vaginosis Treatment Review – Feminine Health Issues
Bacterial Vaginosis (BV) is the name of a condition in women where the normal balance of bacteria in the vagina is disrupted and replaced by an overgrowth of certain other bacteria. BV is the most common vaginal infection in women of childbearing age and it may sometimes affect women after menopause. It produces a vaginal discharge that results from an overgrowth of normal bacteria and certain other bacteria in the vagina. While not dangerous, it can cause disturbing symptoms. Bacterial vaginosis is more common in women who are sexually active and is treated by the medical community as a sexually transmitted disease STD. BV usually does not cause other health problems and is often under diagnosed because many women assume they have a yeast infection and treat symptoms with over-the-counter medications. Bacterial Vaginosis (BV) accounts for 60% of vulvo-vaginal infections.
Symptoms
Symptoms associated with bacterial vaginosis commonly include a thin white or grey discharge and an unpleasant odor (fish-like odor, especially after intercourse). Or a white discharge that sticks to the walls of the vagina, and also the unpleasant, fishy or musty odor, burning when urinating, occasional vaginal itching, and vaginal irritation during or after sex. Sometimes there is a thick white discharge that resembles cottage cheese. Symptoms may get better before the condition is completely cured, so it’s important to use any medications for bacterial vaginosis for the prescribed length of time. Symptoms accompanying a vaginal trichomonas infection may range from simple vaginal itchiness to vaginal swelling, irritation, burning and other signs of serious inflammation. However, most women with BV report no signs or symptoms at all.
Pregnancy
Pregnant women with BV are at increased risk for some complications of pregnancy, such as preterm delivery. Douching increases the risk for vaginal infections, ectopic pregnancy, pelvic inflammatory disease, and other conditions. Ectopic pregnancy is a life-threatening condition in which a fertilized egg grows outside the uterus, usually in a fallopian tube which can rupture. BV during pregnancy may cause the baby to be born too soon. There are treatments available at any stage of your pregnancy. Although treatment is available which quickly cures bacterial vaginosis, if left untreated bacterial vaginosis may increase a woman’s risk of pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), endometritis, cervicitis, pregnancy complications, and post-operative infections among other health conditions. If you have symptoms of BV, talk to your doctor, particularly if you are intending a pregnancy or practice unprotected sex. Bacterial vaginosis during pregnancy has been associated with premature rupture of the membranes, preterm labor, preterm birth, intra-amniotic infection, and postpartum endometritis.
Gardnerella 
Gardnerella Vaginalis is a well-recognized colonizer of the female genital tract and known to cause recurrent bacterial vaginosis. Gardnerella symptoms are fishy vaginal odor and profuse vaginal discharge. Gardnerella vaginalis and the other usurping bacterial species cause BV. The abnormal condition of bacterial vaginosis is brought about when the normal, healthy bacterial inhabitants of the vagina are supplanted by mixed populations of predominantly anaerobic bacteria. Gardnerella vaginalis is a facultative anaerobic gram-variable rod. Gardnerella vaginalis has been reported to occur in up to 100% of women with signs and symptoms of bacterial vaginosis (BV) and in up to 70% of women with no signs or symptoms of BV. ) The microorganisms involved in BV are very diverse, but include gardnerella vaginalis, mobiluncus, bacteroides, and mycoplasma.
Prevention
Some basic prevention steps can help reduce the risk of upsetting the natural balance in the vagina and developing BV. Not having sex is the best protection against acquiring BV and other STDs. Bacterial Vaginosis may resolve without treatment; however, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that all women with symptoms be treated to avoid complications that include a greater predisposition to sexually transmitted diseases and/or pelvic inflammatory disease. BV prevention requires open communication with your healthcare provider and sexual partners. Since prevention is always better than treatment, to begin with every mother should teach some basic vaginal care to her daughter. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that doctors check all pregnant women for BV who previously have delivered a premature baby, whether or not the women have symptoms. Relapse can be treated with a prolonged course of oral or vaginal metronidazole or clindamycin for 10 to 14 days. The United States CDC suggests a treatment regimen different from the initial or previous treatment regimen (e.g., oral treatment if vaginal treatment used previously). The prevention of bacterial vaginosis is yet another reason for always using condoms during sexual intercourse. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention advises that all pregnant women with symptoms of Bacterial Vaginosis be screened and treated.
Metronidazole
Metronidazole cures the problem in 90% of women, but causes an unpleasant metallic taste in the mouth, though this disappears after the treatment is finished. Metronidazole is usually pre
scribed as a tablet taken by mouth, but a gel form that is inserted into the vagina is sometimes used. The oral regimen for metronidazole is 500 mg twice daily for seven days. Metronidazole has been shown to interfere with the metabolism of warfarin (Coumadin) and anticonvulsants; consequently, dosages of these agents may need to be reduced. Metronidazole is a popular antibiotic, but others include Clindamycin, Ampicillin, Ceftriaxone, and Tertracycline.
Metronidazole and clindamycin are the most commonly prescribed antibiotics for treating vaginosis. Metronidazole is available by prescription either in tablet form or as a topical gel for insertion vaginally (brand name Metrogel-vaginal). Metronidazole, a very bitter pill if your doctor prescribes it. Virtually all patients today being handed prescriptions for metronidazole are cautioned that they may experience severe nausea and vomiting if they attempt to consume alcohol while taking this prescription.
Direct applications of local, anti-microbial products support the immune system and its ability to fight the infection and balance the vaginal system. Preventive measures to avoid the occurrence of bacterial vaginosis would include:
Wiping from front to back after bowel movements to prevent bacteria from getting to the vagina Keeping the outside of the vagina dry and clean
Avoiding feminine hygiene products and soaps that have strong scents
Avoiding fabric that can trap moisture.
Most vaginal odor products for treating bacterial vaginosis or vaginal odor attempt to mask or cover up the vaginal odors and symptoms of BV using perfumes and deodorizers. As this vaginal bacterial overgrowth gets bigger and bigger, it produces more and more of vaginal odor producing polyamine. Polyamines are by-products of growing anaerobic bacteria like gardnerella vaginalis that are overgrowing in the delicate environment of the vagina. Noninfectious allergic symptoms can be caused by spermicides, vaginal hygiene products, detergents, and fabric softeners.
Clindamycin
Two different antibiotics are recommended as treatment for BV and your doctor may give you either metronidazole (met-roh-NIH-duh-zohl) or clindamycin (klin-duh-MY-sin). The standard treatment regimen for clindamycin is a cream that is inserted into the vagina at bedtime for seven days; this should no
t be used with latex condoms due to the risk of condom breakage. Clindamycin is an effective treatment for bacterial vaginosis but is more expensive and is associated with diarrhea and infrequently, colitis. It should not prescribed orally for bacterial vaginosis because of this drug’s potential side effect of producing very serious diarrheal diseases and possibly even a life-threatening intestinal infection caused by Clostridium. Clindamycin is known to not only kill the bacterial anaerobes that cause bacterial vaginosis, but it will also kill healthy Lactobacillus species surviving in the vagina, as well. The vaginal cream is also known to have a potential to damage condoms, and the product carries a warning that condoms should not be relied on for contraception or sexually transmitted disease protection during its use. Clindamycin resistance rose from 17% at baseline to 53% after therapy with the clindamycin product (Cleocin vaginal ovules), and importantly, 80% of the women who were noted to have clindamycin resistance following therapy continued to harbor clindamycin resistance 90 days after their treatment. Clindamycin resistance in vaginal anaerobic bacteria is also shown to have a very important spill-over effect on intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis of Group B Streptococcus, a threatening bacteria in late pregnancy.
Products
Products like douches or deodorant sprays that mask vaginal odor should not be used to treat BV. Douching, overused or retained tampons, intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUDs), diaphragms, contraceptive sponges, and products containing nonoxynol-9 may also disrupt the balance. Any condition that changes the environment of the vagina (the vaginal pH or acidity) could lead to this imbalance, such as vaginal creams, douching, hygiene products, lubricants, soaps, or certain types of condoms. Currently, there are very few over the counter products that address bacterial vaginosis. Most of the over-the-counter products are not documented by clinical trials. But as many women cannot eliminate bacterial vaginosis by prescription drugs, they select from the above mentioned products. You can spend the next several months or year surfing all over the internet and testing herbs and products trying to discover the truth about getting rid of BV permanently the natural way. Naturopathic treatment – abstain from sexual activity while the symptoms are active
Treatments
Various information is available about treatments available for BV. Medical doctors do not recognize over-the-counter treatments for bacterial vaginosis. The recommended treatments for bacterial vaginosis include the antibiotics metronidazole or clindamycin, both of which are safe for use during pregnancy (as described above). Oral treatment with seven days of metronidazole is preferred over vaginal treatments. Topical treatments do not reduce pregnancy-associated morbidity, but in non-pregnant women, oral and vaginal therapies are equally effective. Alternate antibiotic prescriptions which you should question if prescribed for you by your doctor. Include the antibiotic amoxicillin and the Triple Sulfa vaginal cream product among other antibiotic treatments still being prescribed by many physicians for their patients with bacterial vaginosis. Studies have demonstrated that these treatments are less effective than metronidazole and clindamycin, and medical authorities in the field of bacterial vaginosis do not recommend that these treatments be prescribed
According to the medical journal Bandolier, which looks at the scientific evidence for treatments, indicates that some research has shown that women using yoghurt treatment felt their symptoms were improved. Home treatments can be very successful and natural methods have a higher cure rate than antibiotics or other antibacterial treatments. The great thing about treating BV is that there are inexpensive but effective natural treatments to cure bacterial vaginosis as well as prescribed medications to deal with the condition. Therefore, it may be appropriate for women with this medical problem to receive both. Another natural treatment is a warm sitz bath with tea tree oil (Melaleucaalternifolia).
Infections linked to premature births more common than thought …
… either by microbes from the vagina that infiltrate the amniotic sac, or by microbes that travel through the mother’s bloodstream from other parts of her body, such as the mouth.
Science: The wider impacts of gut health
Another area with considerable research, and yet apparently overlooked because of the nature of the condition, is bacterial vaginosis, a problem that affects about 30 per cent of women between the ages of 14 and 49.
Lactobacillus acidophilus
… lactase, and anti-microbial substances such as acidolin, acidolphilin, lactocidin, and bacteriocin. Multiple human trials report benefits of Lactobacillus acidophilus for bacterial vaginosis.
BacterialVaginosisCures
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How to Choose the Best Vaginosis Treatment
Find the best vaginosis treatment available and choose best vaginosis treatment for you.
Effect of Microbial Vaginitis for Pregnant Women – Care2 News Network
Bacterial Vaginosis and Pregnancy Vaginal bacterial infections are not only unpleasant but they can be frustrating. Plus, if you are pregnant, they can actually cause some serious health concerns for you and your unborn baby.
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