Vulvar pruritus

Published on 10/03/2015 by admin

Filed under Obstetrics & Gynecology

Last modified 10/03/2015

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Chapter 42 VULVAR PRURITUS

Vulvar pruritus can be caused by a number of different conditions ranging from localized diseases to systemic diseases. The age of the woman is very important in the differential diagnosis. In premenopausal women, contact dermatitis, lichen simplex, and candidal vaginitis are common causes of vulvar pruritus. In postmenopausal women, common causes include atrophic vaginitis, lichen sclerosis, vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia, and vulvar cancer. In patients with diabetes, candidal infections are prevalent.

It is often very difficult to diagnose the cause of vulvar lesions. If the diagnosis is unclear, a biopsy should be performed in order to evaluate for malignancy. Most vulvar cancers occur in postmenopausal women; about 10% of these malignancies occur in younger women.