Vaginal discharge in women can be distinguished depending on the cause of their appearance and duration. Specialists distinguish physiological, due to the stage of the menstrual cycle or age, as well as pathological, which arise due to the presence of certain diseases in the woman’s body. When diagnosing the appearance of vaginal discharge, only an unconfirmed diagnosis can be made. However, effective treatment only for this symptom is not possible. If strange sticky secretions are found, it is important for a woman to immediately go to a gynecologist.
Discharge in normal condition
Vaginal discharge, which is considered completely normal, is formed from mucus. It includes dead cells, the secret of Bartholin glands, microbes. Such secretions also contain lactic acid - a substance secreted after the life of lactobacilli, and glycogen - a substance that ensures the preservation of normal microflora in the woman's vagina. During ovulation, the amount of glycogen in the discharge, when compared with other days of the menstrual cycle, increases significantly.
In the normal state, they should be mucous, almost transparent in color or slightly whitish, with a uniform texture (in some cases, small lumps are present in them) in an amount of 5 to 10 g per day. There is almost no odor in such secretions.
The appearance of leucorrhoea
If a woman’s vaginal discharge becomes too much or, conversely, they are scarce, and at the same time an unpleasant odor emanates from them or their consistency is broken, then they are called whitewash. It is important to remember that in the presence of leucorrhoea, a woman almost always feels unpleasant symptoms: a sensation of strong moisture in the inguinal region, severe burning, itching and discomfort.
Causes of sticky discharge in a woman:
- inflammatory processes (for example, colpitis or adnexitis);
- infectious lesions of the urogenital tract;
- sexual diseases;
- non-specific diseases;
- injury to the inguinal region;
- allergic reactions to synthetic materials, lubricants, latex, poor-quality products for intimate hygiene.
Allocation Classification
Also, all the selections can be divided by their origin. Uterine and tubal discharge are abundant masses of watery consistency, and cervical - thick, leaving in small quantities. Discharges may indicate the presence of the following diseases:
- If leucorrhoea comes out with pus (often an unpleasant, rotten smell is found), then in almost all cases, doctors diagnose the patient’s inflammatory process.
- Protein mixed with blood often reports that a benign or malignant formation is present in the body.
- A large amount of cottage cheese whiteness in the form of flakes may indicate thrush.
- Green or orange whites, often characterized by a putrid odor, indicate a disease such as bacterial vaginosis.
- Leucorrhoea, in which white foam is present, indicates trichomoniasis.
Other reasons for the appearance of secretion of a strange consistency may include genital trauma, uncontrolled contraceptive use, douching with antiseptic agents, vaginal wall drooping, stagnation of blood in the pelvic veins that occurs with a sedentary lifestyle, and other problems.
Why does stickiness appear?
There are many characteristics by which it can be understood whether a woman's sticky discharge is a sign of the onset of pathological processes in the body. Not always the stickiness of the outgoing masses can indicate the presence of lesions.
There are certain phases of the menstrual cycle during which vaginal discharge can change its properties, texture and structure. An example of such a process can be the period of ovulation. But this condition lasts only a few days, after which all the characteristics of the discharge normalize.
It is important to remember that not only on ovulation days, vaginal secretion can increase its stickiness. This also occurs during sexual arousal in women, during intercourse. In this case, a woman has a large amount of sticky discharge without a specific smell. But they also continue for a short time - until the elimination of arousal and acceptance of the soul.
If a woman’s odorless, transparent, sticky discharge doesn’t go away after a few hours after having sex, but only increases in quantity and starts to smell unpleasant, it’s important to immediately seek help from a specialist and get a smear done for bacterial sowing. Most often, such symptoms occur with STDs.
In addition, the strong stickiness of vaginal discharge can be due to factors such as:
- Regular stress, emotional exhaustion, depression.
- The use of certain medications.
- Neglect of hygiene rules (in this case there is also a bad smell).
- A sharp change in climatic conditions, moving to another country.
It should be noted that if the odorless, sticky discharge does not last long and does not bring discomfort, this means that they arise for physiological reasons that do not require any therapy. If they continue regularly and provoke an unpleasant burning sensation in the genitals, then this is already referred to as a pathological condition. In this case, it is very important to go to the gynecologist's appointment and pass all the required tests to identify the disease and prepare a comprehensive treatment.
Additional causes of stickiness
When identifying the causes of increased stickiness of the vaginal secretion, it is important to remember about hormonal disruptions that often occur in the female body. Such problems can occur against the background of both pathological and physiological processes. In this case, a special influence on the state of the hormonal background is exerted by:
- the formation of the menstrual cycle in adolescence;
- bearing a child;
- menopause and menopause.
If a girl has just recently begun her period, then it is important for her to prepare herself for the fact that in the first 4-6 months, there will be sharp jumps in hormones in her body. Such changes can not only lead to problems with menstruation, but also provoke sticky secretions, the volume of which will decrease and increase. This will continue until the menstrual cycle improves and becomes permanent.
Child bearing
At the early stage of bearing the fetus, a woman also has severe malfunctions in the hormonal system. In the first few weeks of embryo organ bookmarking, the amount of progesterone produced increases.
While it is actively reproduced by the body, vaginal discharge can regularly change its consistency and structure - they become either transparent and thick, then white and liquid.
Most importantly, such discharge does not bring severe discomfort and does not exude an unpleasant odor, since such symptoms very often indicate the presence of dangerous diseases in the human body, including infectious ones.
Second and third trimester
If the woman’s sticky secretions do not go away during the second or third trimester of pregnancy, this may indicate a lack of iron in the body and the appearance of iron deficiency anemia, which as a result can lead to fetal hypoxia. When such a symptom occurs, it is very important to conduct a biochemical blood test and determine the root cause of this condition. If the diagnosis is confirmed, it is important to immediately begin treatment measures.
With menopause in the woman’s body, severe malfunctions in the hormonal system occur, which are associated with a deterioration in the reproductive function. In this case, the woman not only has a sticky discharge, but also the period of menstruation is lost.
Monthly periods become irregular (they come with long delays or begin several times a month), and they also change their character (they become either more plentiful or, conversely, scarce). At the same time, the woman feels general malaise, fatigue, sweating and severe aggressiveness), but this condition persists only until the onset of menopause. After it, the patient's condition normalizes, the discharge acquires the usual structure.
Possible diseases
In the composition of the vaginal discharge are pathogens, as well as white blood cells. If their number suddenly increases, then this always leads to an increase in the stickiness of the vaginal masses. Such a process occurs only when a woman has problems with the vaginal microflora or when inflammation begins in the reproductive system.
Problems with the microflora in the vagina pass against the backdrop of activation of pathogenic microorganisms, which can provoke infectious and non-infectious pathogens. With non-infectious lesions, the microflora of the vagina can change:
- with frequent douching;
- uncontrolled intake of antibacterial agents;
- prolonged abstinence from sexual intercourse;
- poor hygiene of the intimate area.
Highlight White
In a normal state, a woman can leave white sticky discharge in a minimal amount. They are colored white for the reason that there are epithelial cells in the vagina, which begin to turn white during the day.
Before the onset of menstruation, vaginal discharge can become stronger, and after menstruation for several days, keep white.
During intercourse
During this period, the amount of secreted vaginal secretion increases several times. This occurs with excitation due to increased circulation in the pelvic organs and stimulation of the gonads. Such a lubricant has a sticky consistency (it can be easily stretched with your fingers) and does not have a special smell. It plays the role of a natural lubricant for the vagina and helps to improve penetration and protect against friction during intercourse. Also in such secretions are various components that play a barrier and protective function.
In some cases, due to problems with hormones (especially with menopause), an adhesive lubricant is not produced, which causes significant difficulties during intercourse. In this case, to improve the hormonal background, a woman needs to consult a specialist who will additionally prescribe special moisturizing products.
Discharge after intercourse
After intercourse, sometimes a woman has a small amount of sticky discharge of yellow color. In this way, the vagina eliminates the secret in which male sperm is located. Such secretions are more like egg white and have a sperm odor.
With increased sensitivity of the vaginal microflora, allergic reactions to contraceptives (especially condoms with flavors and dyes), medications, intimate hygiene products and synthetic underwear often appear.