Most women who think they have a vaginal yeast infection are wrong and may be doing more harm than good when attempting to treat their problem, a Saint Louis University (SLU) researcher told a conference for the International Society for the Study of Vulvovaginal Disease. "Everything that itches isn't a yeast infection," said SLU's Susan Hoffstetter. "People keep treating themselves. They buy over-the-counter medicines for yeast infections or they call the doctor to get a prescription for medicine over and over again."
However, according to Hoffstetter's study, nearly three times out of four, they are treating themselves for a problem they do not have. "If you treat yourself and it never goes away, you shouldn't continue to treat yourself," she warned. "You're making a situation worse and you can get into cyclic episodes where you think you have a yeast infection all of the time."
Vaginal yeast infections are common but out of the women studied who thought they had yeast infections, only 26 percent actually did. "Their symptoms didn't correlate with the clinical evidence of a yeast infection," Hoffstetter said. The women reported itching and a vaginal discharge, which also could indicate an inflammation, dry skin tissues or a sexually transmitted infection. These problems require a different treatment than the anti-fungal medicine given for a yeast infection.
Hoffstetter's advice to women who think they have a yeast infection is to call their doctor or women's health nurse practitioner for an appointment. The physician or nurse practitioner will do a pelvic exam to detect swelling and unhealthy discharge. "Women shouldn't just run to the drugstore if they think they have a yeast infection. The optimal thing would be to be evaluated," Hoffstetter concluded.
Related articles:
Cunnilingus To Blame For Recurrent Yeast Infections
Vaginal Infections Often Ignored
Aphrodite's Discussion Forums: Yeast Infection
Source: Saint Louis University
