Unexplained vaginal area burning

[kgreen]

This gets a bit gross lol, so if you're squeamish, please look away

I'm 10 years post-op (Dr. Brassard). No problems in 10 years: no infections, dialation still goes fine, no pain, no issues.

Except...

Five months ago I woke up one day to my vaginal area burning intensely. Seemed mostly outside, both around and under the vaginal opening and the labia folds at times too. It was constant, although the intensity varied throughout the days.

Guessing a UTI, my doctor started me on an antibiotic, and otherwise had me use zinc oxide and hydrocortisone creams on the outer skin just in case it was irritated. After 5-7 days, the burning went away. The UTI culture came back questionable, so I can't say for sure that was the issue.

Skip ahead five months, and three weeks(!) ago the burning returned. UTI tests came back negative, so my doctor started me using the zinc oxide and hydrocortisone creams on the outside.

The pain persisted for a week, so I saw both my Gyno and an ER doctor. Both did internal exams and saw what they assumed was the "obvious cottage cheese" of a yeast infection and started me on Fluconazole (pill) and Monistat cream.

The burning pain persisted. After many more days, the cultures they took surprisingly came back negative for yeast.

So today, three weeks after this started (and still burning), I saw the Physician's Assistant to a TS surgeon who specializes in TS post-op care. She did an internal exam and saw the white stuff inside. It was a clump of *something* that had accumulated around a small patch of hair that had grown inside (potential downside to the one-step procedure). She removed the white stuff, mentioning that it and the whole area has an odor, douched with betadine, and treated what she said was minor granulation at the site with silver nitrate.

She also did her best to remove the gobs of zinc oxide I had been slathering on everything outside for weeks.

My question is: has anyone experienced burning down there for reasons other than yeast infection? Does any of this sound familiar?

After three weeks of pain I'm getting a bit desperate to escape it. So far everyone seems to be making educated guesses, but nothing has helped. I do think we're on the right track though, as I noticed a faint odor about the time this all started, so I'm thinking it's all related.

I should add that I'm celibate, so it's not an STD, herpes unlikely, etc. Blood tests normal, EKG normal, the TS Assistant said everything down there otherwise looks healthy and intact, as did the ER doctor and my PCP. I dialate with the largest dilator (blue?) every 4 weeks or so without problems.

[AnonyMs]

I'd guess the internal hair is no coincidence, and I've read of women having infections due to that. You could try searching for vaginal hair and see what turns up.

I think you can get blood tests for signs of infection. Perhaps it will show up something different to the other tests.

[Rachel]

Hi,

I am one month and one week shy of 2 years post op. At about the 8 month mark post op I developed a odor in my vaginal l area. I scheduled an appointment with Papillion (Dr. McGinn's office). The PA-c did an internal exam. There was a hair (loose) and some white stuff around it. It smelled bad.

She treated some granulation with me too and sent me on my way. She said to be carful dilating as a stray hair can hitch a ride on the dilator and get lodged in the vagina.

She said to douche with water, if needed, and clean the outside with soap and water and stick 2 fingers in with soapy water and clean. The issue cleared up.

I got this cleared to use at Papillion. I use a side stream shower hose with a shower douche attachment. It is probably 1/2 inch in diameter. I use it maybe three times a week and it keeps me fresh and clean. Always let the shower side stream hose drain completely after use and preferable let it hang down and run the water 20 seconds before use. I think this is an awesome way of keeping clean and free of all the lube and anything that can get in there. 

I have a pleasant vaginal scent and I feel so confident at work and the gym.

I hope this helps.

Rachel

[kgreen]

I am one month and one week shy of 2 years post op. At about the 8 month mark post op I developed a odor in my vaginal l area. I scheduled an appointment with Papillion (Dr. McGinn's office). The PA-c did an internal exam. There was a hair (loose) and some white stuff around it. It smelled bad.

She treated some granulation with me too and sent me on my way. She said to be carful dilating as a stray hair can hitch a ride on the dilator and get lodged in the vagina.

Thank you! It's comforting to know it's not Just Me

When douching after the silver nitrate, did you notice any small flecks of something (skin?) flushed out?

Did you experience any burning on the outside folds during the episode? That's the mystery for me. I've been wondering if perhaps there was a discharge that leaked out and over those areas, though I didn't notice any.

I also developed (or noticed) a UTI a week ago, which led to starting antibiotics a few days ago. Curiously, soon after starting them, the burning sensations mostly went away. Similar experience to when this happened before.

I'm hoping to tie together the clues to determine the root cause of the burning down there to prevent it from happening again, and to know what to do this if it does.