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Recurrent bacterial vaginosis doesnt care about your plans, whatever your life looks like at the moment.
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What causes recurrent BV?
Onestudyfound that 58% of cases among the 121 participants recurred even after treatment.
Its a delicate dance down there!)
The good lactobacilli make acid, which tends to keep the bad bacteria away, explains Dr. Minkin.
Heres what might be throwing things out of whack and contributing to your stubborn BV.
So put down the soapyou dont need anything fancy to wash with, given that your vagina is self-cleaning.
Having a consistent sexual partner can increase the risk for recurrent BV.
There are some otherless-expected habitsthat might have something to do with BV that wont leave you alone.
For instance: Smoking cigarettes can also up your chances of getting BV more frequently, says Dr. Phillips.
According toresearchpublished inNature,smoking can alter the vaginal microbiome and contribute to deficiencies in lactobacilli bacteria.
This means you have to be sure of what youre actually dealing with.
Bacterial STIs can also be strikingly similar to BV, symptom-wise.
Wesee it all, and can reassure you what is normal.
And if anything is off, we can help, says Dr. Bovone.
Ask a doctor to test you for BV specifically, too.
Once she knows whats actually going on, shes able to devise a treatment plan.
She recommends a vaginal moisturizing gel likeReplensto help with dryness.
You may have heard of boric acid suppositories and other over-the-counter treatments that purportedly balance the vaginal microbiome.
You dont need any vaginal wash.
This will disrupt the normal bacteria and create more issues, says Dr. Bovone.
Once you finish the whole course of medication and your vagina seems calm again, youre good to go.
We know, BV is not a good timeespecially when you have life events that involve bikinis!
or simply getting laid!
And it can be particularly difficult to get to the bottom of the recurrent cases.
But dont be ashamedthis is SO common, and there are effective treatments available to you.
It just takes a bit of trial and errorand patience.
