Vaginal microbiology of women with acute recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis

Alterations in the autochthonous vaginal microflora can predispose women to recurring attacks of Candida vaginitis. Quantitative aerobic and anaerobic cultures were obtained from 24 premenopausal women with acute recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis and from 21 healthy asymptomatic premenopausal women. Lactobacillus species constituted the predominant flora in both groups, with a mean log10 CFU/ml of 8.7, a total isolation rate of 96%, and a mean of 1.6 Lactobacillus species isolated per patient compared with a mean log10 CFU/ml of 8.9, a total isolation rate of 90%, and a mean of 1.2 Lactobacillus species isolated per patient in the vaginitis and control groups, respectively. The results of this small study failed to provide evidence of an altered or abnormal vaginal bacterial flora in women with non-antibiotic-induced recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis suffering from acute Candida vaginitis.