Six Years Observation After Successful Treatment of Bacterial Vaginosis

Summary Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is the most common vaginal infection among women of childbearing age. This condition is notorious for causing severe complications related to the reproductive health of women. Five decades of intense research established many risk factors for acquisition of BV; however, because of the complexity of BV and lack of a reliable animal model for this condition, its exact aetiology remains elusive. In this manuscript, we use a historical perspective to critically review the development of major theories on the aetiology of BV, ultimately implicating BV‐related pathogens, healthy vaginal microbiota, bacteriophages and the immune response of the host. None of these theories on their own can reliably explain the epidemiological data. Instead, BV is caused by a complex interaction of multiple factors, which include the numerous components of the vaginal microbial ecosystem and their human host. Many of these factors are yet to be characterized because a clear understanding of their relative contribution to the aetiology of BV is pivotal to the formulation of an effective treatment for and prophylaxis of this condition.

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“…After treatment for BV, many women remained colonized by G. vaginalis or other BV‐associated anaerobes (Ferris et al. 1995; Boris et al. 1997).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The aetiology of bacterial vaginosis

Turovskiy

Noll

Chikindas

2011

Journal of Applied Microbiology

201

160

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“…In addition, high rates of recurrence of 50% to 70% have been shown in several studies [9, 16, 18Y26]. Symptomatic BV persists or recurs in up to 30% of women at 1 month and in 50% to 70% by 3 months [16Y18, 22,27].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High-Dose Vaginal Metronidazole for Recurrent Bacterial Vaginosis—A Pilot Study

Aguin

Akins²,

Sobel

2014

Journal of Lower Genital Tract Disease

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“…Moreover, women infected with BV are frequently reporting a high incidence of recurrence 8,9 . Such frequent episodes of relapse make the problem a chronic one increasing the liability to secondary complications especially during pregnancy 2,9 …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A high recurrence rate after treatment of BV is, however, a common and stressful problem. Although cure rate figures reach up to 80% after 1 week of treatment, 7 this figure drops to close to 60% after 1 month of treatment 8,9 . Prolonged treatment has been the only effective solution to prevent this recurrence; however such approach raises concerns about potential toxicity 10 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%