How Is a Vaginal Yeast Infection Diagnosed?
Your doctor may diagnose a vaginal yeast infection based on your description of symptoms and possibly a vaginal exam. During the exam, your doctor may take a vaginal wet smear to look for the yeast under a microscope
How Are Vaginal Yeast Infections Treated?
If you have had a vaginal yeast infection previously and you’re confident that’s what you have, you may choose to treat it with an over-the-counter cream or suppository (a medication that dissolves in the vagina). These treatments may cause burning or irritation.
If over-the-counter medications don’t help, see your doctor so they can confirm that you do have a yeast infection and then give you a prescription for anti-fungal medications. Some yeast infections are resistant to the more common medications and may require different medications or longer treatment.
Due to the potential for complications, certain women who think they have a vaginal yeast infection should see their doctor and not try to treat it themselves. These women may need longer treatment. They include:
- Women with diabetes
- Pregnant women
- Women with weakened immune systems
- Women with frequent vaginal yeast infections (four or more a year)
Should You Treat Yourself, or See a Doctor?
In many cases, you can safely treat a vaginal yeast infection with an over-the-counter medication. You can also try to treat a yeast infection at home with these tips to ease itching, burning, and other symptoms. Just know the three situations in which you should see a doctor, and then you can get started.
When Self-Care Might Be OK
It might be OK if your doctor told you in the past that you had a yeast infection and you now have the same symptoms. You need to be sure you have a yeast infection and not something else.
There’s one other question to ask yourself first. Have you had sex with a new partner? Many of the symptoms of a yeast infection — itching, burning, and vaginal discharge — can mimic the symptoms of sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
When to See Your Doctor
If any of these three situations sounds like yours, you need a doctor’s attention:
- It’s the first yeast infection you’ve ever had. See a doctor to be sure it’s not a more serious problem that needs a different treatment, such as a urinary tract infection or STI.
- You’re pregnant. Any medications, including over-the-counter vaginal creams, need to be approved by your doctor during pregnancy.
- You often get yeast infections. If you have four or more yeast infections in a year, doctors call it “recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis.” If you have it, you’ll need treatment for up to 6 months with an antifungal medication. Frequent yeast infections can also be a sign that you have diabetes or another medical condition.
If you’re concerned about your symptoms or they’re different from past yeast infections you’ve had, you may want to see your doctor for your own peace of mind. They may recommend a prescription-strength vaginal cream to ease the itching and burning more quickly than an over-the-counter product would. There are also oral antifungal medications that might be prescribed.
Tips for Self-Care
There’s nothing definitive that you can do that will prevent yeast infections entirely, but there are some things you can try which also may treat a yeast infection once you have it.
Acidophilus. Eating yogurt with live cultures of lactobacillus acidophilus — a natural, “friendly” bacteria — may head off a yeast infection. Taking supplements with lactobacillus acidophilus may also help prevent them.
Watch what you wear. Avoid tight-fitting pants and wear cotton panties to allow your body to “breathe” and stay cool. Yeast thrives in a moist, warm environment, so keep things airy and dry to prevent a yeast infection from coming back.
Nonprescription treatments. If you’re sure you have a yeast infection based on a past episode, you could try an over-the-counter medication to treat your symptoms. These products are usually creams, dissolvable tablets, or suppositories (oval-shaped doses of the medication) that you put into your vagina. If your symptoms do not clear up, follow up with your doctor.
Also, It is helpful that if you diabetes, keeping it under control and keeping up your overall health..
Also, It is helpful that if you diabetes, keeping it under control and keeping up your overall health..