Before looking for information about the signs of vaginal infection you should know that there are some bacteria that can naturally be found in the vagina.
These produce acid that fight the bad bacteria along with fungi and viruses that could cause harm. If the acidity of the vagina gets lower, women get affected by a vaginal infection.
Symptoms of vaginal infection
It is normal for women to have some vaginal discharge. The color and the amount of this discharge changes during excitement, the menstrual cycle and pregnancy.
The most common symptoms of an infection include abnormal vaginal discharge, meaning the discharge will have an unusual color or smell.
Some other vaginal infection signs include soreness or irritation of the vulva accompanied by vaginal itching, pain during intercourse, bleeding after intercourse, pain in the abdomen, redness, lumps, swelling, ulceration or blisters on the vulva or pain around the anus during urination.
If you see any of these signs, you should see a doctor.
Causes of the common infections
As you may have thought, the signs of vaginal infection depend on the kind of infection that you are affected by. As it has been mentioned before, there are certain kinds of bacteria living in the vagina.
There are some factors that can bring a change in the balance of them, like stress, hormonal changes and cleansers.
Because of them you will notice the vaginal infection symptoms since there will be too much bacteria growing.
If there is a foreign body, such as a tampon that you forget about, it could also support the growth of bacteria. In some cases the infection could turn out to be life threatening. This situation is called ‘toxic shock syndrome’.
It is important to remember that if you are affected by signs of vaginal infection you should think whether you had unprotected vaginal intercourse during the last period. Sometimes the infection can also be caused by skin-to-skin contact. These infections are known as sexually transmitted infections or STIs.
Diagnosis
If you are facing warning signs of vaginal infections, you should know that there are several different methods to test for such infections. It is possible that your doctor will ask you to provide a urine sample. In other cases the doctor or nurse looks into your vagina with the help of a speculum and he or she will take a swab.
Common types of infections
You can see the signs of vaginal infection in case of thrush if there is too much yeast growing in your vagina. There are some triggers that may cause this infection, such as pregnancy, diabetes, antibiotics, perfumed soaps, tight underwear and contraceptive pills.
In case you see the vaginal infections warning signs you could also be thinking about bacterial vaginosis. This occurs when the bacteria that naturally live in the vagina overgrow. This is known as the most common cause of discharge in case of women in their childbearing years.
There are some other reasons as well for which you could see signs of vaginal infection. This is why being informed can make all the difference.
