Why do doctors take samples from vaginas?
When we see our doctor because of abnormal vaginal symptoms, such as itching, redness, pain, or unusual discharge from the vagina, your doctor may require tests to diagnose the cause. Taking a swab from the vagina allows your doctor to send samples from your vagina to a pathology laboratory where tests can be done on vaginal discharge (mucus) and loose cells from the vaginal lining that the swab has collected. The results of these tests will often lead to a definitive diagnosis of why you have the symptoms.
What is the doctor looking for?
The doctor is trying to clarify the cause of your symptoms because many different conditions can cause similar vaginal discomfort.
For example, you may have contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI) that will require specific medical treatment (such as chlamydia or gonorrhea).
You may have a bacterial infection, such as bacterial vaginosis, or a fungal infection, such as a yeast infection, which are not strictly STIs, but are caused by germs that always live in your vagina. When these microbes have grown too large to “pest” proportions, they create a nuisance.
You may have a parasitic infection like trichomonas vaginalis which is caused by a small protozoan (single-celled) microbe.
After all, you may not have an infection, just irritation caused by chafing during sex or an allergic reaction to washing powder used on your underwear.
How do doctors actually take samples from the vagina?
A cotton swab resembling a long, oversized “q-tip” or “q-tip” will be inserted into the vagina and moved around the vaginal walls to collect any discharge, discharge, and loose cells that are present . The swab is then placed in a sterile plastic container and sent for testing.
Where do the vaginal swabs go?
The vaginal swabs are sent to a specialized pathology laboratory for analysis according to your doctor’s suggestions.
In the pathology lab, they may look at a “stained” smear of your vaginal discharge under a microscope to see if they can find anything unusual (such as a pathogenic protozoan). The sample is usually stained with a dye to help show the contrast in the mostly transparent sample.
The pH (acidity/alkalinity) of your vaginal discharge can be tested to determine if the problem is more likely fungal or bacterial in nature.
Your pathology sample can be incubated by smearing it on an “agar agar” plate and keeping it in an incubator for a few days to see what grows. Any pathogenic (disease-causing) microbes that have been smeared on the agar (which provides a lovely nutrient-rich food source for the microbes) should grow at 37°C incubation, as that is human body temperature. Once a colony of microbes has grown, it is much easier for pathologists to determine what it is.
Does it really help to take a swab from the vagina?
If neither you nor your doctor are sure what is causing your vaginal discomfort, then swabbing is a fantastic diagnostic tool. Aside from the obvious embarrassment involved in the procedure, it is minimally invasive and should lead you to the correct treatment.
Is it really necessary to rub the vagina?
The swab does not always reveal the problem behind the vaginal symptoms. A study conducted at the University of Leeds and published in the Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners in 1978 reported that women presenting with vulvar pruritus (the medical term for itching of the vulva or external parts of the vagina) and vaginal discharge indicative of of vaginal itching. Candidiasis (infection with Candida albicans, also known as yeast infection or yeast infection) might test positive for vaginal yeast infection at first, then a week later after placebo treatment test negative. Similarly, women who originally tested negative for Vaginal Candidiasis diagnosed by incubation from vaginal swabs, tested positive using the same test after one week of placebo treatment. The researchers weren’t sure whether the swabs were taken from different parts of the vagina on the two different occasions or whether the yeast infection had cleared up on its own (in some women’s vaginas) and had reappeared on its own (in other women’s vaginas).