An overview of vaginal infections’ etiologies in south-eastern Gabon

Abstract Discomfort in women of childbearing age associated with vaginal infections, namely Bacterial Vaginosis (BV), Aerobic Vaginitis (AV), VulVovaginal Candidiasis (VVC), and Trichomoniasis (TV), represent a serious and ongoing gynecological complication throughout the world. This study aimed to investigate the etiologies of vaginal infections among outpatients in south-eastern Gabon. A cross-sectional study was designed using participants referred directly by their treating doctor for a vaginal swab. Socio-demographic data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Microscopic examinations were used for TV and BV diagnostic. All vaginal swabs were cultured for AV and VVC isolates using standard microbiology methods. A total of 573 women of reproductive age participated in the study. The most common identified vaginal infections were BV (62.8%) and AV (51.1%) followed by VVC (34.1%). No significant difference was observed for each etiology compared to socio-demographic data. Streptococcus B (23.9%), Staphyloccocus aureus (17.7%), Klebsiella spp. (11.6%), and E. coli (5.8%) were the bacteria most associated with AV. A high incidence of Non-C. Albicans Candida (NCAC) strains causing vulvovaginitis were found. The prevalence of TV (2.1%) was low. Mixed infections had been common among participants. No association was found with TV and other vaginal infections, unlike others studies. The present study identified BV 228 (83.5%) and AV 227 (83.2%) as the main cause of mixed infections. The mixed infection AV-BV 113 (41.4%) was the most represented. Also, that simultaneous AV-BV-VVC represented 69 (25.3%) of mixed infections. Molecular analyses would be needed to identify the key species commonly associated with these vaginal infections.