To 'douche' or not to 'douche': hygiene habits may have detrimental effects on vaginal microbiota.

To 'douche' or not to 'douche': hygiene habits may have detrimental effects on vaginal microbiota. J Obstet Gynaecol. 2018 Feb 13;:1-4 Authors: Aslan E, Bechelaghem N Abstract The importance of a healthy vaginal micro-flora is indisputable. Therefore, intravaginal practices, such as vaginal douching (VD), may inhibit or lower the colonisation of beneficial Lactobacilli strains. Although the results of disrupted vaginal microbiota have been widely reported in the literature, direct microbicidal effects of products used for VD have been rarely studied. Moreover, there are certain studies advocating the beneficial effects of VD. This in vitro study was designed to provide more evidence to help health care givers in disseminating the knowledge that VD might have detrimental effects on vaginal microbiota. Three commercially available VD products (A, B and C) were examined for their minimal inhibiting concentrations (MICs) against Lactobacilli strains. Although the MICs of product A (ranging from 0.19% to 0.09%, p < .05) were proven to be lower than the other two, all the products were potentially able to inhibit the growth of Lactobacilli strains effectively, and hence should be used with caution. Impact statement What is already known on this subject? The importance of vaginal microbiota has long been reported for the maintenance of health. The lack of a healthy vaginal ecosystem may lead to various diseases including pelvic infla...
Source: Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology - Category: OBGYN Tags: J Obstet Gynaecol Source Type: research