Secretions — the normal and the abnormal
GYNAECOLOGIST Dr Ryan Halsall says a woman’s obsession with the way she smells and what she secretes can sometimes border on paranoia, and it’s important that every woman knows what’s normal and what’s not.
This, he says, can save quite a bit of stress and money from unnecessary treatments like douching, and unnecessary doctors’ visits.
He explained that the vagina normally produces a discharge, and this comes from glands along the genital tract. The main purpose is to keep the vagina germ-free and moist.
“This normal discharge varies depending on the time in her menstrual cycle, ranging from thin and transparent to a thicker, cloudier variant. Some women even use this as part of a natural birth control method to determine when it’s safe for them to have sex.”
Dr Halsall listed the following as abnormal:
1. It smells and itches
If the discharge is smelly, itchy or colourful, it is likely to be abnormal and will require some form of evaluation and treatment by your doctor.
2. It’s thick, white and clumpy
“The commonest complaint is that thick, white, clumpy, itchy discharge of a yeast infection,” Dr Halsall said. He added that most women can confidently diagnose this themselves and have chosen to self-treat successfully with over-the-counter medication. However, he cautioned that women should be careful not to label every itchy episode as yeast.
3. It’s white and runny
According to Dr Halsall, another common nuisance is the white, watery, foul-smelling discharge of bacterial vaginosis. “It’s a little harder to detect as the discharge doesn’t look a lot different from the regular day-to-day secretions. It’s usually just a whole lot more, and smells like fish, especially after intercourse,” he said.
4. It’s yellow
Dr Halsall said yellow or green runny discharges usually signify a sexually transmitted disease like gonorrhoea or trichomoniasis. He stated that the latter is usually frothy and very itchy.
5. It’s pink and brown
Dr Halsall said this is a sign of blood. “This can be caused from a bad infection of the cervix from an STI, or could point to other bleeding problems from the womb. These bleeding problems may be due to hormone imbalances, medication (especially contraception), polyps or even cancer,” he said.
Dr Halsall said while those are easy enough to diagnose and treat, there are some important infections that can be present without a significant discharge.
“Chlamydia — a sexually transmitted bug — is known to wreak havoc in women’s genitals, damaging tubes and causing long-standing pain. It usually goes undetected in any woman as it can produce little or no change in your regular vaginal discharge. As such we always advocate for condom use, and more importantly, to get yourself screened for this and other sexually transmitted infections. In this case, what you don’t know can hurt you,” he said.
— KH
