Rahat Jabeen, Ilyas Siddiqi.
Frequency of Vaginal Candidiasis amongst Pregnant Women & Effect of Predisposing Factors.
Ophthalmol Update Jan ;12(2):140-3.

Background: Pregnancy represents a risk factor in the occurrence of vaginal candidiasis. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the frequency of Candida species present in the vaginas of both symptomatic and non-symptomatic pregnant women attending antenatal clinics and examine the role of age of subjects and age of pregnancy on the occurrence of Candida infection Material and Methods: This prospective study was conducted at antenatal clinic of Gynaecology and Obstetrics department at Hayatabad Medical Complex, Peshawar from Jan 2010 to Jan 2011. A total of 145 pregnant patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria were included in the study. Data were collected regarding patients demographic, information on parity, trimester of pregnancy, presence of vaginal discharge and the presence or absence of diabetes. Vulva and vagina were inspected for signs of inflammation and discharge with sterile speculum and vaginal specimens were collected with sterile cotton tipped swabs and were subjected to gram staining and examined microscopically for the diagnosis of candidiasis and how some predisposing factors would affect the frequency of isolation of species. Results: The frequency of vaginal candidiasis during pregnancy was found to be 60%, in which 35.1% were symptomatic and 24.8% were asymptomatic group. Women in the second trimester of pregnancy had the highest occurrence (59.9%). Increased ratio of age distribution of patients with Candida showed isolation rates of 46.8%, 29.6% and 23.4% among age 17-23, 24-30 and 31-37 years, respectively. Increased ratio of infection was observed in multigravida and diabetic women. Conclusion: Although there is generally a high frequency of vaginal candidiasis, an increased ratio of vaginal candidiasis in multigravida and diabetic pregnant women requires these women to be routinely screened for vaginal candidiasis regardless of symptomatic status.

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