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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Prevention and Risk Factors
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Specifics

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Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Reference Desk
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• Children
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• Patient Handouts

Summary

The vulva is the external part of a woman's genitals. Some problems you can have with the vulvar area include:

• Vaginitis or vulvovaginitis, swelling or infection of the vulva and vagina
• Skin problems due to allergy
• Vulvar cancer
• Vulvodynia, or vulvar pain

Symptoms may include redness, itching, pain, or cracks in the skin. Treatment depends on the cause.

Start Here

• About Vulvodynia (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish
• Vulvodynia (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
• What Causes Vulvodynia? (National Vulvodynia Association)

Diagnosis and Tests

• About Vulvodynia: Diagnosis (National Vulvodynia Association)

Prevention and Risk Factors

• Vulvar Care (American College of Nurse-Midwives) - PDF

Treatments and Therapies

• Self-Help Tips (for Vulvar Pain) (National Vulvodynia Association)
• Vulvodynia Treatments (National Vulvodynia Association)

Specifics

• Vulvodynia (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development)
• Yeast Infection (Vaginal) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Vulvar Diseases (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Vulvodynia (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Large vulvar skin tag removed in a primary care office setting.
• Article: Application of a diagnosis flow draft based on appearance impression for...
• Article: A large sample-based case-control study of related risk factors of two...
• Vulvar Disorders -- see more articles

Reference Desk

• Vulva Anatomy (National Cancer Institute)

Find an Expert

• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Also in Spanish

Children

• Labial Adhesions (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Labial Adhesions: A Guide for Parents (Boston Children's Hospital)

Teenagers

• Lichen Sclerosus (Boston Children's Hospital)

Patient Handouts

• Vulvodynia (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Vulvovaginitis (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish