Ms. Wang found that she had a lot of secretions these days, but she did not feel any itching in her external genitals, so she did not pay enough attention and did not go for a check-up to see what was wrong, thinking it should get better in a few days.
However, a week later, she found that the increased secretions not only did not improve, but instead became more severe.
She went to the pharmacy to buy medicine by herself, and the salesperson told her that it might be gynecological inflammation and that it would be best to have a check-up and treat it accordingly.
Many people think that if there is no itching in the external genitals, it should not be vaginitis, and some even find inflammation and buy medicines by themselves.
In fact, these are some misconceptions about vaginitis that every woman needs to understand.
Is itching in the external genitals a definite sign of vaginitis?
Some women judge whether they have vaginitis based on whether they have itching in the external genitals.
If they simply have increased secretions, they assume it is not a gynecological problem. However, vaginitis can have many different manifestations, and not every manifestation will appear in one person.
Some people may only have increased secretions, and some may also have itching in the external genitals. However, itching in the external genitals is also one of the manifestations of vaginitis, not everyone will experience it. Therefore, one cannot rely on whether there is itching in the external genitals to determine if it is vaginitis.
If increased secretions are noticed, or if there are other discomforts in the lower body, a routine examination of vaginal discharge is needed to determine whether there is inflammation based on the examination results.
Several misconceptions about vaginitis that women need to avoid
1. Self-medication
Many people, after finding out they have vaginitis, feel that going to the hospital for a check-up is troublesome and opt to buy medication themselves for treatment. Because it is very convenient to buy medicine from various sources.
However, due to the various types of vaginitis, such as bacterial, fungal, trichomonas, etc., different pathogens cause different vaginitis, and the medications used for treatment are different. Only targeted medication can cure the disease.
If the medication is not targeted, it may only alleviate the symptoms at the beginning, but it does not cure the disease, and it may lead to recurrent inflammation, making later treatment more complicated.
Therefore, when abnormal secretions are noticed, the first step should be to go to the hospital for an examination and then treat the condition accordingly.
2. No need for treatment if there is no external genital itching
As mentioned above, many people think that if there is no itching in the external genitals, it is not vaginitis, and therefore, treatment is not necessary. If other symptoms are found, such as increased vaginal discharge, yellowish color, but no itching in the external genitals, it could still be a form of vaginitis.
At this point, an examination and treatment are needed, it might still be in the early stages of inflammation or some people might only have symptoms of abnormal secretions. Early detection and treatment can prevent the disease from progressing more severely and avoid longer treatment periods.
3. Regular use of feminine washes can prevent vaginitis
Many women believe that by using feminine wash every day, they can keep their lower body clean and prevent inflammation. In reality, frequent and long-term use of feminine washes can disrupt the normal flora, upset the normal pH balance, and make it easier to develop vaginitis.
Therefore, women should be careful not to use feminine wash every day, wash with clean water daily, change underwear daily. Also, it is important to understand the misconceptions about vaginitis to avoid the disease from developing more severely and harming one’s health.
Reference materials:
1. [Many Misconceptions in the Treatment of Vaginitis] by Xu Xiangfang, “Health Must-Read: Medical Insurance World”
2. [Six Major Misconceptions about Women’s Vaginitis] by Liu Ziying, “Chinese Community Physician”
3. [Analysis and Countermeasures of Misconceptions in Health Care for Vaginitis Patients] by Gao Limin, “E-Journal of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine on Cardiovascular Diseases”
