Most women have at least once developing a yeast infection, which is often called thrush. Usually it is not dangerous, but can cause discomfort, especially if the episodes are repeated often.

Typical symptoms of thrush are:

• Itching around the vagina
• Pain during sexual intercourse
• Burning sensation when urinating
• Vaginal discharge - odorless, liquid and may be transparent or nearly white and thick, the consistency of cottage cheese. Sometimes thrush occurs without emissions.
• Sometimes thrush appears more severe symptoms:
• Redness of the vagina and vulva
• Cracked skin around the vagina
• Swelling of the vagina and the vulva

Small sores on the skin around the genitals (this is relatively rare and is usually a sign of the presence of other fungal infection, or herpes - a virus that is the causative agent of genital herpes).

Depending on the symptoms and their frequency of occurrence of doctors isolated complicated and uncomplicated thrush. In the first case it is the first episode of thrush or repeated episodes rarely. In the second case it is the severity of symptoms and episodes repeated four times a year and more frequently.

Consult your doctor if:

• You first noticed the symptoms of thrush at.
• You are younger than 16 or older than 60 years.
• You are pregnant or suspect that you may be pregnant.
• You are breast-feeding.
• You have observed abnormal menstrual bleeding or discharge of blood between periods.
• Do you often have pain in the lower abdomen.
• Symptoms are different from those which were in previous episodes of thrush (e.g., selection of a different color and / or odorous).
• Have you got blisters and / or lesions in the vagina and vulva.
• During the past six months you have had 2 or more episodes of thrush.
• You or your sexual partner have been previously diagnosed with any diseases, sexually transmitted diseases.
• In the past, your body respond poorly to treatment with antifungal drugs, or they have not worked.
• Symptoms do not improve for 7-14 days.

Causes

Usually thrush is a yeast fungus Candida albicans. In many women this fungus is present in the vagina without causing any symptoms because the vaginal secretions and beneficial bacteria keep it under control. The problem arises when the balance in the vagina is disrupted and Candida albicans starts to actively proliferate.

Thrush is not a disease, sexually transmitted, but sometimes it is transmitted during sexual intercourse. Therefore, during episodes of thrush should refrain from having sex.

Some factors increase the likelihood of developing thrush

• Antibiotics. Thrush occurs in approximately one-third of women who take antibiotics, since these drugs are destroying the beneficial bacteria that live in the vagina.
• Pregnancy. Increased levels of female sex hormones, such as estrogen Estrogen - the key to bone health During pregnancy contributes to the emergence of new episodes of thrush. Thrush during pregnancy does not harm the fetus. However, preparations for the treatment of thrush Treating Thrush: how to get rid of bad fungus   harmful to an unborn baby; they should be avoided.
• Diabetes. The episodes of thrush often begin in women with uncontrolled diabetes - this is due to periodic fluctuations in blood sugar levels Blood sugar - a very important indicator . With adequate treatment of thrush in patients with diabetes appears no more likely than other women.
• Weakened immune system. The risk of symptoms of yeast infection is greatly increased if the person's immune system is weakened - it happens in infected with HIV or in people who are undergoing chemotherapy Chemotherapy - it always falls the hair? .

The acidic balance of the vagina changes during menstruation, pregnancy, diabetes disease, taking certain antibiotics, birth control pills and steroids. Excessive moisture and irritation of the vagina also promote the growth of yeast bacteria.

Colposcopy is a common and binding method of diagnosis when examining female doctor gynecologist. The method is subjective and largely dependent on the results of the study to conclude the competent doctor who is conducting a survey. Not all the days of the menstrual cycle The days of the menstrual cycle: Four phases   colposcopy allowed to do so during a visit to the doctor the woman can get the most information about what to do when the colposcopy that the results were reliable.

Restrictions for colposcopy

By itself, a colposcopy procedure does not have any restrictions, but there are certain moments that a woman should know if you plan to pass this type of survey. During the woman's menstrual cycle can be identified some limitations to conduct colposcopy study, and this is due to physiological changes in the body.

Bleeding from the genital tract is a contraindication for any manipulation. As for the mid-cycle, at this time in the cervical canal Cervical canal - the path traversed by every person   Women formed a lot of mucus, so to conduct a full investigation is not given possible. This is due to hormonal changes, which resulted in the mucus becomes thicker, it is produced in large quantities. During the period of ovulation Ovulation - How to determine as accurately as possible?   there is an increase of sexual hormones estrogen, which affect the viscosity, and mucus production. Considering that ovulation occurs on average at 12-14 day of the cycle, it is possible to calculate the most optimal days for investigation.

During a visit to a woman gynecologist should ask her about the day of the onset of menstruation and recommend to come for investigation after the menses. The most optimal time can be called the seventh, the eighth day of the cycle. Calculate the time the physician may, depending on the duration of menstrual bleeding, considering that there are individual features of each woman.

The exception is when a colposcopy Colposcopy - how to prepare it properly?   appointed to carry out therapeutic measures (eg electroconization neck, or other medical procedures). In this case, colposcopy appointed a few days before the deadline when to begin the next menstruation. Then there will be a rejection of scab neck with menstrual blood that is most favorable to the healing process of the wound surface.

Recommendations before the procedure

Colposcopy can not be performed if a woman receives a topical treatment on the inflammatory process and too little time has passed since its completion (some experts advise that the period after the end of treatment was one week). Contraindicated also do the bath or douche the day before the appointed day of the study. Informative colposcopy in such a case is low, and the results can be uninformative. From taking a swab cytology also have to abstain if a woman douche.

A few days before the study should not be sex, you can not use any local means of contraception (candles, creams or spermicides). Their use should be discontinued at least two, three days. If a woman came to the reception, and it was on the eve of sexual contact, in this case should not be taken for Pap cytology. The result of this smear is unreliable. During colposcopy in identifying changes may be necessary to capture more in-depth analysis for the morphological study, so it is important to comply with all the recommendations and carry out research in the allotted time for this.

Marina Solovyov