Is it normal for the vulva to thicken?

If you find that your vulva is thickening during the examination, you must go for further examination to confirm the diagnosis. This is not a normal phenomenon. Generally speaking, thickening of the vulva is related to infection and endocrine disorders. If female friends have sex during menstruation, the chance of this disease will increase. Therefore, it is necessary to avoid any sexual intercourse during menstruation.

The occurrence of endometrial hyperplasia is closely related to infection and estrogen overstimulation. The related factors mainly include sexual intercourse during menstruation, unclean sexual intercourse or multiple partner sexual intercourse, anovulation, polycystic ovary syndrome, endocrine functional tumors, and the use of exogenous estrogen. In addition, the study also showed that high education, obesity, diabetes and hormone replacement therapy have epidemiological characteristics of high-risk factors for endometrial hyperplasia, especially hormone replacement therapy, which greatly increases the risk of endometrial hyperplasia.

1. Bacterial vaginosis

In a normal vagina, lactobacilli that produce hydrogen peroxide are dominant. Bacterial vaginosis is an endogenous mixed infection caused by a decrease in Lactobacillus and an increase in Gardnerella and anaerobic bacteria in the vagina.

2. Candidal vaginitis

(1) 80% to 90% of pathogens are Candida albicans, which grow easily in an acidic environment and are diphasic bacteria (yeast phase and hyphae phase).

(2) The patient's vaginal pH is 4.0-4.7, usually <4.5.

(3) Conditionally pathogenic bacteria (yeast phase → mycelium phase).

(4) Common causes: pregnancy, diabetes, and large-scale use of immunosuppressants and broad-spectrum antibiotics.

(5) Other contributing factors: gastrointestinal Candida, wearing tight synthetic underwear, and obesity.

3. Trichomonas vaginitis

(1) Trichomonas vaginalis grows best in a humid environment with a temperature of 25℃ to 40℃ and a pH of 5.2 to 6.6.

(2) The vaginal pH changes before and after menstruation, becoming close to neutral after menstruation, making it easier for Trichomonas to reproduce.

(3) The patient's vaginal pH is generally between 5.0 and 6.5, with most cases being > 6.0.

(4) Parasitic on the vagina, urethra or paraurethral glands, bladder, renal pelvis, male foreskin folds, urethra, and prostate.

It often coexists with other vaginitis.