[Evaluation of microscopy methods for the diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis]

The diagnosis of Bacterial Vaginosis has always been controversial. During many years, the laboratory diagnosis of this syndrome was based on the criteria of Amsel et al (1983). This includes many factors, such us aqueous vaginal discharge, positive KOH test and the presence of clue-cells in a wet mount or Gram stain. Lately, a new diagnostic method only based on laboratory findings was performed by Nugent et al (1991), which has the advantage of being more objective and rapid. It is also easy to be used in any laboratory or even in a doctor's room. In this study, we evaluated 74 Gram stained vaginal smears and compared both Amsel et al (1983) and Nugent et al (1991) methods. Bacterial Vaginosis was diagnosed in 28% by Amsel et al (1983) criteria and in 31% by the Nugent et al (1991) criteria. The latter method seems to have a higher efficacy in diagnosing Bacterial Vaginosis, although both techniques together diagnose a higher number of cases.