Aetiology & risk factors of recurrent vaginitis & its association with various contraceptive methods.

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES Women who do not seek treatment for recurrent vaginitis have risk to acquire other sexually transmitted infections. Besides proper antibiotic treatment, male condom acts as a barrier to various infections. Present study was done to assess type of vaginitis, its association with various contraceptive methods and need of male condom in prevention of recurrent vaginitis. METHODS Prospective hospital based cohort study with a total of 400 women with recurrent vaginitis was done. Wet mount and Gram's staining examination were done to diagnose type of vaginitis. After treatment, proper counselling about good hygiene and use of male condom for 4 months in addition to their contraceptive method was advised. Patients were called after four months or when they developed symptoms of vaginitis. RESULTS Tubal ligation (38.8%) and non contraceptives (34.0%) were the most common methods used by recurrent vaginitis patients. Bacterial vaginosis (BV, 53.8%) and mixed infection (36.8%) were commonly seen infections. BV was not observed in OC pill users. Overall post-treatment cure was 89.1 per cent. INTERPRETATION CONCLUSIONS: Our findings showed that male condom use provided protection against recurrent vaginitis and its use should be promoted with other contraceptive methods in high risk cases. Female condom may be another option.