How many women are affected by vaginitis?
Most women will have vaginitis at some point in their lives.1 In the United States
- About 30% of women of childbearing age have bacterial vaginosis (BV).2
- Nearly 75% of all adult women have had at least one yeast infection in their lifetime.3
- About 3% of women of childbearing age have trichomoniasis.4
Many women with vaginal infections have no symptoms. For instance, only 16% of women with BV report vaginal symptoms.2 For every 100 women who do have symptoms such as pain, itching, and discharge5
- 40 to 45 women have BV.
- 20 to 25 women have a yeast infection.
- 15 to 20 women have trichomoniasis.
Who gets vaginitis and who is at risk?
Vaginitis affects women of all ages, races, and backgrounds. Some factors may increase a woman's risk of getting certain types of vaginitis.
- A woman's risk of getting BV is higher if6
- She has a new sex partner.
- She has more than one sex partner.
- She douches.
- A woman's risk of getting a yeast infection is higher if7
- She is pregnant.
- She has diabetes that is not controlled.
- She uses oral birth control ("the pill").
- She douches or uses vaginal sprays.
- She uses certain antibiotics or steroid medicines.
- She has a weakened immune system, such as from HIV.
- A woman's risk of getting trichomoniasis is higher if1
- She has a new sex partner.
- She has more than one sex partner.
- She has a history of sexually transmitted diseases.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2010). Sexually transmitted diseases treatment guidelines, 2010. Retrieved March 23, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov/std/treatment/2010/default.htm [top]
- Koumans, E. H., Sternberg, M., Bruce, C., McQuillan, G., Kendrick, J., Sutton, M., et al. (2007). The prevalence of bacterial vaginosis in the United States, 2001–2004: Associations with symptoms, sexual behaviors, and reproductive health. Sexually Transmitted Diseases, 34, 864–869. Retrieved May 23, 2012, from http://journals.lww.com/stdjournal/Fulltext/2007/11000/The_Prevalence_of_Bacterial_Vaginosis_in_the.6.aspx [top]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2012). Genital/vulvovaginal candidiasis statistics. Retrieved March 27, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov/fungal/candidiasis/genital/statistics.html [top]
- Sutton, M., Sternberg, M., Koumans, E. H., McQuillan, G., Berman, S., & Markowitz, L. (2007). The prevalence of Trichomonas vaginalis infection among reproductive-age women in the United States, 2001–2004. Clinical Infectious Diseases, 45, 1319–1326. Retrieved May 23, 2012, from http://cid.oxfordjournals.org/content/45/10/1319.full [top]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2010). Self-study STD module—vaginitis. Retrieved March 23, 2012, from http://www2a.cdc.gov/stdtraining/self-study/vaginitis.asp [top]
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2010). Bacterial vaginosis—CDC fact sheet. Retrieved March 23, 2012, from http://www.cdc.gov/std/bv/stdfact-bacterial-vaginosis.htm [top]
- National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. (2008). Vaginal yeast infection. Retrieved March 23, 2012, from http://www.niaid.nih.gov/topics/vaginalyeast/pages/default.aspx [top]