Vulvar dystrophies in young and premenopausal women

Eighty-six cases of vulvar dystrophy in young and premenopausal women (age range, 6-53 years) were studied clinically and histopathologically. The most frequent symptom was pruritus associated with burning. Clinical examination showed the presence of white areas in 73% of the patients, red areas in 9% and other signs (such as melanosis) in 18%. Hyperplastic dystrophy was the most frequent type of dystrophy in these patients and was observed in 63% of cases. Cellular atypia was observed in 9.8% of the cases and was found almost exclusively in hyperplastic dystrophy. Epithelial changes suggestive of human papillomavirus infection were found in 4 of the 86 cases of dystrophy, and they were observed only in atypical dystrophies.