The most common symptoms of BV include a discharge and an unpleasant vaginal odor. Women may easily mistake BV for a yeast infection, but BV requires a different treatment, so it is important to get an accurate diagnosis.
To promote awareness of BV, a group of nine women's health leaders from across the United States participated in a meeting in Philadelphia to discuss bacterial vaginosis. Their meeting yielded key findings around overall awareness, diagnosis and treatment of BV.
Here are some highlights:
Awareness
- BV is a condition that can have serious health implications; it can cause preterm labor, pelvic inflammatory disease and increased transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.
- BV is not classified as a sexually transmitted infection, even though it is often sexually facilitated. An overgrowth of bacteria in the vagina, sometimes from douching or a lack of vaginal lactobacilli, causes BV.
- When women attempt to self-diagnose and self-treat with over-the-counter products and homeopathic remedies, it can lead to poor health consequences and difficulty carrying out proper treatment.
Diagnosis
- A health care provider should diagnose BV during an office visit, not over the telephone.
- Women need education on the signs, symptoms and risks of BV to aid with more rapid diagnosis.
Treatment
- Health care providers should prescribe medical treatment for women diagnosed with symptomatic BV.
- Many women with BV experience recurrence of symptoms. This is a serious and ongoing issue and needs further study.
- Women with BV need more treatment options.
- To learn more about BV, please watch the below video and take our BV survey.
SOURCE: Healthywomen
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