The Role of Probiotics in Preventing Recurrent Bacterial Vaginosis and Vulvovaginal Candidiasis: A Literature Review

Abstract

Bacterial vaginosis (BV) and vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) are the most common vaginal infections that cause vaginal discharge in women. An imbalance of the normal vaginal microbiota can make it easier for the vagina to become infected with bacteria and fungi. The recurrence rate for both diseases is 40–60%. Therefore, alternative therapies are needed to prevent the recurrence of these two diseases. Probiotics are believed to be able to maintain a normal microbiota balance in the vagina. This study aims to determine the role of probiotics in BV and VVC therapy, to prevent recurrence of these two diseases. A literature search was performed on two databases namely PubMed and Science Direct, using several keyword combinations to obtain relevant results. There were 12 studies that met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. There are six studies explaining the role of probiotics in BV and VVC, respectively. The use of probiotics intravaginally or orally can significantly reduce the recurrence rate of these two diseases, restore normal vaginal conditions in BV as well as improve clinical symptoms in VVC. The combination of antibiotics and probiotics can increase the effectiveness of the therapy.