5 Common Vaginal Infections And Their Symptoms

Vaginal infections also known as vaginitis is very common and most women will experience it during their lifetime.

Females are more susceptible to vaginitis during the reproductive years. Fluctuating hormonal levels, bacteria, and sexual activities are some of the most common reasons women experience vaginal infections.

Below are 5 vaginal infections and their symptoms.

1. Bacterial vaginosis:

Bacterial vaginosis, also known as vaginal bacteriosis is one of the most common causes of vaginal infection for women of childbearing age and affects women in the age range of 15 and 44 years.

Symptoms:

Vaginal discharge may be watery and thin, gray or white in color and have a strong and unpleasant smell, often described as fishy there could also be a burning sensation during urination and itching in the vagina.

2. Candidiasis:

This is also called yeast infection and is the most common type of vagina infection, it is caused by a species of fungi known as candida. Candida lives naturally in small numbers in parts of the body, including in the vagina. It thrives in a warm, moist, airless environment and, under those conditions, can grow in number and cause a vaginal infection.

Symptoms:

A thick, white discharge that resembles a cottage cheese. Yeast infections also can cause vaginal itching and redness of the vulva.

3. Trichomoniasis:

This is one of the three most common vaginal infections, it is caused by the parasite Trichomonas vaginitis and it is the only sexually transmitted infection of all the vaginal infections.

Symptoms:

A burning, irritation, redness, and swelling of the vulva, with a yellow-gray or greenish vaginal discharge, possibly with a fishy odor. Some women with the infection also experience pain during urination.

4. Genital warts:

This is a sexually transmitted infection caused by some strains of the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). It causes serious pain and itching and very dangerous because it can cause cancer of the cervix and vulva.

Symptoms:

Burning pain or bleeding when urinating or during sex, itching, abnormal discharge, small round lumps usually on or around the cervix, vagina, vulva or anus.

5. Genital herpes: