Normal vaginal discharge is typically clear or milky white, thin, and odorless. Healthy discharge helps maintain pH balance and clears out bacteria and old cells.
1. Clear or Straw-Colored: This is usually healthy, indicating proper vaginal health and hormonal balance.
2. Thin and Milky: Normal cervical mucus that can change with menstrual cycle phases keeps the vagina moist and defends against infections.
3. Off-white to Light Yellow: These can also be normative; slight color variations are often harmless due to dietary factors or recent menstruation.
4. Gray or Slime-Like: While some variation is normal, an overgrowth of normal bacteria may cause gray discharge.
5. Green or Brown: Non-bloody, these colors typically signify bacterial overgrowth or infection.
6. Slimy: This constant and combination discharge can indicate bacterial vaginosis.
7. Watery and Rapid: May highlight an infection like trichomoniasis.
8. Clotted or Septic: Constantly dark and frothy discharge, with an intense odor, signifies a severe bacterial infection—seek medical advice immediately.
9. A Blood Tint: After menstruation, small amounts of blood in discharge are normal. Significant bleeding outside periods warrants consultation.
10. Foul Smell: Any unusual odor, even with a clear appearance, could indicate bacterial vaginosis and needs medical attention.
11. Increasing: Even if it initially seems normal, a persistent or intensifying discharge can indicate an infection.
12. Pain and Itching: Along with discharge, noticing these symptoms can suggest an infection or STI.
It’s crucial to understand the context and persistently experience any changes in discharge patterns. Consulting a healthcare provider upon noticing unusual discharge symptoms is always recommended.
(Word Count: 368)
Source: Shutterstock
Normal vaginal secretions
The vagina is an organ that is very sensitive to changes in hormonal rate, especially to the level of circulating estrogen.
The vaginal walls are always moist, kept moist by a secretion that changes characteristics according to the stage of the menstrual cycle in which one is. If we consider a woman with regular cycles, thus with an interval between the first day of two successive cycles of about 28 days, the vaginal secretions increase approximately around day 9-10, corresponding to the increase in estrogen, until they peak at day 13-14 of the cycle, a period that coincides with ovulation. These secretions are transparent, stringy, elastic.
Immediately after ovulation the losses decrease dramatically And a dry phase begins. The reason that coinciding with ovulation the losses take on this characteristic is related to facilitating, in the periovulatory phase, the passage of spermatozoa, thus creating an environment that ensures their improved viability and progression toward the tubes, i.e., to the place designated for the encounter between the spermatozoon and the egg cell to be fertilized. Since these losses are related to ovarian activity are not present in women using hormonal contraception (pill, patch, ring), precisely because hormonal contraception inhibits ovulation. Thus, physiological vaginal secretions:
#iol_player_container.vjs-top-parent-mobile width: 100%; position: fixed; z-index: 1000; left: 0;
- coincide with the periovulatory phase;
- are odorless, transparent, elastic;
- they resemble egg whites.
Abnormal vaginal discharge
Not all vaginal discharge is physiological, however; some may indicate a infectious process in progress, an alteration of the local bacterial flora, or the presence of an ectropion (the infamous cervical sores). Let’s get our bearings on the type of discharge.
For example, candida, a fungal infection that is very common especially in the summertime, can give profuse white discharge, in most cases odorless and having a thick consistency, like curdled milk. They may be associated with itching and burning, both internal and external and swelling of the vulva.
On the other hand, different vaginal discharge can occur in the course from Trichomonas vaginalis infection; when this protozoan infects the vagina, the losses are abundant, watery, greenish-yellow and with an unpleasant odor.
Still different are the losses we are faced with at a’alteration of vaginal flora: We speak in this case of bacterial vaginosis, which means that the beneficial lactobacillary flora that normally colonizes the vagina has decreased and other species, which are usually present in very low concentrations (such as the Gardnerella for example). In this case, the discharge is grayish-white, even very profuse, not very dense and with a fishy odor.
Also theGonococcal infection can give profuse yellowish vaginal discharge associated with burning, swelling, and pain during sexual intercourse: these symptoms may be associated with more or less nuanced urinary complaints.
Finally, mention should be made of the Clamydia, a sexually transmitted disease that can give very mild and nuanced symptoms (stringy mucous discharge, bleeding, sensation of irritation) but that in the long term, if left untreated, can also give major complications on reproductive function.
When to be concerned
The important house is keep an eye on how long these losses last and what characteristics they have. For example, if you notice an increase in secretions only in the ovulatory period, with the characteristics we saw earlier, then there is no need to worry, everything is normal.
On the other hand, if the vaginal discharge is outside this time window, it has a excessively strong, pungent odor or are associated with other symptoms such as Itching, burning, redness of the genitals, then it is definitely more appropriate to contact your referring gynecologist to figure out how to proceed.
For diagnosis, a cervico-vaginal swab, that is, a collection of both vaginal and cervical secretions, from which it is possible to show what type of microorganism is present and what antibiotic, if any, is effective.
Another important thing to keep in mind is that some of these infections can give distant or major complications during pregnancy; therefore, it is good to do not neglect any symptoms and possibly also do screening tests for sexually transmitted diseases. Therefore:
- Pay attention to the characteristics of vaginal secretions;
- use a condom as protection: remember that some local vaginal treatments (creams, ova) may decrease its strength;
- take screening tests for sexually transmitted diseases, especially in the presence of gonococcal or chlamydia infections;
- take care of personal hygiene (linen, use of appropriate soaps, proper washing frequency);
- do not neglect the signals of one’s body;
- contact the gynecologist with any concerns or needs.
