Itching

[xxxemily.livejournal.com]

Hello.

About two weeks ago, I developed an itchiness around my vulva/labia. I initially accounted it to an after-sex itch (condom irritation, etc) that would go away after a day or so. The itching has only become worse over time; it is tolerable in the daytime, yet my sleep has been disturbed twice now during the night and is borderline intolerable. I do not have any unusual odor or discharge, nor does anything look different visually. I am just incredibly itchy.

I tried changing my body wash. The problem lessened over a few days, but then worsened again. My laundry soap has been unchanged for months.

I have been sexually active with a guy for about a month now. We always use condoms for intercourse... however, there is not any protection for oral sex.

Researching things, I'm scared to say I have signs of trichomoniasis (itching, but no discharge/odor). I was tested about two months ago (std-free), and he is the only partner I've had since then. He claims to have been tested for the "major" STD's through bloodwork. I've asked him to get tested again, but he does not have medical insurance at the moment.

Have any of you experienced just itching with no other symptoms? Am I being paranoid or unrealistic to think trich is a possibility? Any other thoughts or advice? =\

Oh, and I've only not visited my gyno because I've worked every day since the itching began, and the office closes before I get out of work..

Comments

[kimie-catclaw.livejournal.com]

It's quite possible you have an external yeast infection-- all of the itch without the chunky discharge.

Also, just a heads up- at VP we're asked not to use "clean" to mean "STD-free" because it implies that people with STDs are "dirty."

[xxxemily.livejournal.com]

Oh dear, I feel very insensitive now. Was not my intention-edited now =]

I've actually never heard of an external yeast infection. Sounds far less scary than trich... I'll look into it more, thanks.

[mommaalli.livejournal.com]

I experienced this while I was pregnant and I ended up having bacterial vaginosis. My doctor gave me a cream suppository thing and it went away in 2 days. ;)

[mommaalli.livejournal.com]

And just fyi, if you don't have any other symptoms, I'd be wary to treat it as a yeast infection. I treated my BV with monistat when I thought it was an external YI and I burned the crap out of my vagina. Horrid pain. I'd go to the doc before trying to treat it.

[xxxemily.livejournal.com]

Yikes, that doesn't sound pleasant at all. This is very relieving to hear, and will certainly ease my mind for the "in-between" time for when I can get to my doctor. Thanks a lot.

[misssockpuppet.livejournal.com]

this! i actually have a YI and BV right now. the YI treatments made my BV so much worse. i'd go to the doc too!

[misspaigeb.livejournal.com]

I agree that it sounds like an external yeastie. They usually cause a lot of itching without any weird discharge/smell. I would apply some plain, unsweetened yogurt to your vulva over night. You can just slather it on a pad and then sleep with the pad. It helps a lot!

[xxxemily.livejournal.com]

Do you know if it is okay to try this even without being certain that it is a yeast infection? Is applying the yogurt harmful otherwise?

[hellgamatic.livejournal.com]

100% okay...it doesn't cause the problems that medicines do when used incorrectly :D

[atalanta0jess.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I definitely wouldn't jump straight to trich - a yeastie is a far more likely possibility. Any of the at home methods in the vulvapedia would be appropriate for treating it, even without confirmation that its yeast - none of them will hurt you if its not.

[xxxemily.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's good to hear. I will rummage through the vulvapedia now. This is all very relieving to hear. Thanks so much!

[poppleshatesyou.livejournal.com]

I definitely wouldn't jump to Trichomonas so fast either! The most typical symptoms of Trichomonas (http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/trichomonas/factsht_trichomonas.htm) include foul smelling or frothy green discharge from the vagina, and vaginal itching or redness. So while you may have itching, you would more than likely be experiencing some serious discharge if it were Trich. Have you ever had a yeast infection before?

The only way to really figure out what is going on is to see some form of medical professional, but you might find the Vulvapedia entries on Yeast (http://www.vaginapagina.com/index.php?title=Yeast_Infection) or BV (http://www.vaginapagina.com/index.php?title=Bacterial_vaginosishttp://www.vaginapagina.com/index.php?title=Yeast_Infection) helpful in the interim.

Per the STI testing, many places like Planned Parenthood or your local health department will do STI testing for free or on a sliding scale, you don't need health insurance to get tested.

[tigana33.livejournal.com]

Make sure when you get an sti test you specifically ask for a type specific herpes blood test. Of course there is no way to tell but sometimes non stop itch can be a symptom of herpes.

[archangelbeth]

If herpes were in the standard blood tests, up to 90% of everyone would test positive, because so many people are exposed to cold sores -- which is HSV -- and therefore have antibodies to 'em.

A blood test can only look for antibodies, and can't tell people where an outbreak might occur. Yeah, the odds are that HSV-1 is going to be oral, but there are HSV-1 genital infections. Same with HSV-2, that sometimes has oral infections.

From the doctor's point of view, there'd be so many positive results that the test isn't really diagnosing anything interesting for them, I bet.

Now, that they don't tell anyone this is... exceedingly annoying. But doctors often forget how to use clear language like, "Okay, cold sores? Those blisters that many people get on their lips? That's herpes too. No big deal, just don't touch the sore and then your eyes. But nearly everybody gets exposed to it, so we don't test for HSV unless we see genital sores. We can do it if you ask, but if you test positive, the chances are pretty high that some granny kissed you as a kid, or kissed her grandkid and her grandkid kissed you as a toddler in preschool or something, and now you have antibodies that've prevented you from ever having a recognizable outbreak."

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

A blood test can only look for antibodies, and can't tell people where an outbreak might occur. Yeah, the odds are that HSV-1 is going to be oral, but there are HSV-1 genital infections. Same with HSV-2, that sometimes has oral infections.

From the doctor's point of view, there'd be so many positive results that the test isn't really diagnosing anything interesting for them, I bet.

This. Additionally, a positive result on a blood test can't say whether you've ever had an outbreak, predict whether you'll experience an outbreak in the future, or even determine whether specific mouth or genital lesions are due to a present outbreak (or whether a particular red sore is, say, a zit). So while I can see where they'd be useful in knowing whether a person has antibodies to either strain of the virus, I can also see where they'd be not so useful in figuring out if X is caused by Y.

[archangelbeth]

Oh, yeah, type-specific can be useful, because the odds are somewhat in favor of the types being in their preferred locations! But that's still... Hm. From a doctor's point of view, they probably don't want to have to educate everyone about it, and...

While experts estimate that some 30% of genital herpes infections in the United States may be caused by HSV-1, only 2- 5% of recurring genital outbreaks are caused by HSV-1. [...] In the absence of prior oral infection, however, HSV-1 spreads easily to the genital area, usually through oral sex. In some countries, such as Japan and parts of Great Britain, genital HSV-1 is as common as genital HSV- 2, or more common.
--http://www.herpes.com/hsv1-2.html

If that site is correct, then it really is a coin-flip if you go by a blood test alone, as to where someone might get an outbreak -- if, as frolicnaked points out, they ever get an outbreak at all.

I do agree that I think it'd be a good idea to test for it and explain what a positive result could mean... But I also see why doctors don't. I disagree with them not doing so, especially now that type-specific tests are more reliable! But... *beth grimaces and shrugs*

[flutterbye29.livejournal.com]

the exact same thing has happened to me before. it just went away after a week and a half by itself