Vaginal dryness appears when blood estrogens decrease. These changes in the vaginal mucosa end up causing a lack of lubrication in the area.
Which women may suffer from vaginal dryness
Vaginal dryness can occur at all ages but is more prone to occur in women between 40 and 45 years of age in the climacteric stage before and during menopause. It can also occur in young women who have low doses of estrogen in contraceptive treatments and in women undergoing cancer treatments.
How to know if you suffer from vaginal dryness: what are the symptoms?
The most common symptoms are lack of lubrication and bleeding during sexual intercourse. If they are not detected we can find major symptoms such as: cystitis, urinary tract infection or itching.
Treatment for vaginal dryness
1) Classic treatments: The most common treatments consist of the use of vaginal creams. There is scientific evidence that they work well for symptoms but people abandon them.
2) Treatments that last longer: use of hyaluronic acid. It consists of infiltrating fine needles in the posterior and lateral faces of the vagina where the initial discomfort usually occurs. First of all, a topical anesthesia is applied and the acid is introduced into the mucosa. It captures a lot of water, hydrating the area, which improves collagen and elasticity, which in turn leads to rejuvenation. It is quite common that during the first days patients notice a slight stinging in the vulva. The duration of this treatment is usually between 9 months and 1 year.
3) Platelet-rich plasma: This treatment consists of drawing blood from the patient, centrifuging it, extracting the platelets and infiltrating them into the vagina. This technique is mostly used in women with severe dryness. In most cases women who require this treatment need to reactivate their hydration.
4) Laser: This treatment consists of placing a vaginal applicator similar to the ultrasound probe. Thus, shots are fired around the entire vaginal mucosa causing small burns that rejuvenate the entire mucosa.
The advantages of the use of the laser are many:
– The entire mucosa can be treated in depth with very good results.
– The laser can be used in cases where atrophy already affects the entire vaginal canal.
– Only 2 sessions are necessary
– It does not hurt and does not require anesthesia
The specialists in Gynecology and Obstetrics recommend taking the precaution of not having sexual intercourse in the following 3-4 days.
How to prevent vaginal dryness
The best prevention to avoid vaginal dryness is frequent intercourse or orgasms, as the cells of the vaginal epithelium are renewed.