Etiologic factors of Candida vulvovaginitis in pregnant women

Candida species are the second most common cause of vaginitis in worldwide after bacterial agents. This study was performed to determine the etiological factors of Candida vulvovaginitis in pregnant women.

This descriptive-analytical study, was performed on 100 pregnant women with vaginal discomfort that referring to gynecologic and obstetric clinics of the Sanandaj Social Security Hospital, Kurdistan province, Iran during 2016. After obtaining informed consent and collecting background information using a questionnaire, the patients were examined by a specialist physician and samples were collected. Identification of isolates was done based on colony color and also using PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method.

Candida vulvovaginitis was seen in 29% of women. Candida albicans were the most common cause of the disease (86.2%) followed by Candida paraposilosis (10.43%) and Candida glabrat (45.3%) . There was no significant relationship between diabetes and candida vulvovaginitis. There was a significant relationship between the history of antibiotic usage, age over 35 and third trimester of pregnancy with Candida vulvaginitis (P<0.05).

The prevalence of Candida vulvovaginal candidiasis was 29% and Candida Albicans was the most common cause of the disease.