Correct Clinical Diagnosis of Acute Vulvovaginitis

Acute vulvovaginitis is one of the most common reasons that women seek medical care. Just how accurately can the three most common causes — bacterial vaginosis, candidiasis, and trichomonas vaginalis — be identified clinically? Experienced nurse practitioners addressed this question by prospectively comparing results obtained with a standardized clinical protocol with those obtained using DNA probes for each of the common causes.

In all, 535 active-duty U.S. military women who presented with symptoms of vulvovaginitis were enrolled at four sites; the most common symptoms were abnormal discharge (50%), itching or irritation (33%), malodor (10%), and burning (4%). Clinical evaluation involved standardized history collection, pelvic examination…