What causes vaginal bleeding?

Females usually experience their first vaginal bleeding around the age of 12. This is the first menstruation after puberty, but this menstruation is not very regular, so it will continue intermittently for a short period of time. There will be bleeding. As a parent, you must have a correct understanding and not ignore the condition to prevent it from getting worse. What is vaginal bleeding? There are many reasons for vaginal bleeding.

Girls usually have their first vaginal bleeding (menarche) at around the age of 12. If menstruation occurs before the age of 10, it is considered precocious puberty. Most parents can identify children with precocious puberty because girls will first have secondary sexual characteristics before they develop puberty: enlarged breasts, bulging areola, accelerated growth, the appearance of armpit and pubic hair, followed by the appearance of leucorrhea, and finally the onset of menstruation. However, there are a very small number of careless parents who think that as long as the child has vaginal bleeding, it means menstruation. Even if the child is relatively young and has no secondary sexual characteristics, they will think that it is due to the child's precocious puberty.

In fact, vaginal bleeding in children is often caused by illness, especially for children under 10 years old. Most vaginal bleeding is an abnormal phenomenon or even a symptom caused by a serious illness, such as genital tumors. Therefore, any vaginal bleeding in children under 10 years old should be taken seriously.

Causes of vaginal bleeding

1. Vulvar and vaginal diseases or injuries: These diseases are the most common causes of vaginal bleeding. Common diseases include vulvovaginitis, labia majora adhesions, urethral prolapse, vulvar skin diseases such as lichen sclerosus, vulvar and vaginal injuries, tumors, etc.

2. Endometrial or uterine bleeding: usually due to immature puberty, such as hormone withdrawal, arteriovenous malformation, precocious puberty (congenital sex hormone enhancement, central nervous system damage, hypothyroidism, etc.).

Vaginal bleeding symptoms

In addition to vaginal bleeding, there are often symptoms of the primary cause. For example, in addition to bleeding, vulvovaginitis may also cause redness, itching, pain in the vulva and vagina, and increased secretions. Foreign objects in the vagina can cause bleeding and increased secretions. If the foreign objects are present for a long time, bloody and smelly vaginal secretions will appear. The injury causes bleeding and often significant pain. Precocious puberty may cause symptoms such as vaginal bleeding, enlarged breasts, fullness of the vulva and growth of pubic hair.

Correct way for parents to deal with vaginal bleeding

If you find obvious vaginal bleeding or blood in your underwear, you should first observe the bleeding carefully. At the same time, you can check whether there is anything inserted into the vagina. However, even if you find a foreign object in the vagina, do not try to remove it by yourself. You should go to the hospital as soon as possible to ask a doctor to help remove it.

You should observe whether the vulva is red, has increased secretions, etc., and whether the child scratches the vulva with his hands or rubs the vulva with other objects. The condition before bleeding is also important, such as whether the child has ever fallen on a stone, iron object, or the corner of a stool, etc. (local trauma). These clues can help determine the cause of the bleeding, so tell your doctor in detail.

If you find bleeding, even if there is only blood on the child's underwear, you should take your child to the hospital for a gynecological examination as soon as possible.

General examination of vaginal bleeding

To determine the cause of the bleeding, the doctor will give your child a detailed examination. First, the doctor will observe whether the child has secondary sexual characteristics, such as enlarged breasts, full vulva, pubic hair, etc. Afterwards, we will check whether the child's vulva and vaginal mucosa are normal, and whether there is any redness, swelling, increased secretions, etc.

Due to the special position of the vulva and vagina, a special posture is required to examine them clearly. A common posture is to raise the child's lower limbs and spread the legs as far as possible to fully expose the vulva and vagina. Another common position is the knee-chest position, in which the child kneels on the bed with both knees, and then the head, neck, and chest lean forward and rest on the bed, with the hips raised and the legs spread apart, so that the anus and vagina can be well exposed.