Surprising Benefits of Sex Slideshow Pictures Take the Yeast Infection Quiz What's Causing Your Pelvic Pain Slideshow

Medical Author:

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, Chief Medical Editor

Melissa Conrad Stöppler, MD, is a U.S. board-certified Anatomic Pathologist with subspecialty training in the fields of Experimental and Molecular Pathology. Dr. Stöppler's educational background includes a BA with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia and an MD from the University of North Carolina. She completed residency training in Anatomic Pathology at Georgetown University followed by subspecialty fellowship training in molecular diagnostics and experimental pathology.

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Medical Editor:

Mary Nettleman, MD, MS, MACP

Mary Nettleman, MD, MS, MACP

Mary D. Nettleman, MD, MS, MACP is the Chair of the Department of Medicine at Michigan State University. She is a graduate of Vanderbilt Medical School, and completed her residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Infectious Diseases at Indiana University.

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Follow-up

Follow up with your doctor for results of your cervical lab tests and Pap test. It is recommended that you have a complete physical examination every year, whether or not you are experiencing any symptoms.

• Because the chemical balance of the vagina is very sensitive, it is best to let the vagina clean itself. The vagina takes care of cleaning itself naturally through secretions of mucus. Warm water and gentle, unscented soap during the bath or shower is the best way to clean the outside areas of the vagina. Products like feminine hygiene soaps, powders and sprays are not necessary, and may be harmful.
  
  
• Douching is rinsing or cleaning out the vagina by squirting water or other solutions (such as vinegar, baking soda, or douching solutions you can buy at drug and grocery stores) into the vagina. The water or solutions are held in a bottle and squirted into the vagina through tubing and a nozzle. Although douching is a common practice among women in the United States, health care providers do not recommend douching to clean the vagina. Douching changes the delicate chemical balance in the vagina, which can make you more likely to develop a vaginal infection. Research shows that women who douche regularly tend to have more problems such as vaginal infections than women who do not douche or who rarely douche.
  
  
• Douching is not a form of birth control, and douching after sex does not prevent pregnancy.