Vaginal Itching (Pruritus Vulvae): Diagnostic Tests

Pruritus vulvae (vulvar pruritus).

Obligatory medical device diagnostics for local findings.

  • Phase-contrast microscopy of vaginal secretions (vaginal secretions) – live, unstained cells appear extremely low in contrast in a normal bright-field microscope; these are clearly visualized by the phase-contrast method (see below for 1st-order laboratory parameters)

Optional medical device diagnostics – depending on the results of the history, physical examination, laboratory diagnostics and obligatory medical device diagnostics – for differential diagnostic clarification.

  • Abdominal sonography (ultrasound examination of the abdominal organs) or vaginal sonography (ultrasound examination using an ultrasound probe inserted into the vagina (vagina)) – to assess the genital organs.
  • Proctoscopy and rectoscopy (rectoscopy of the rectum and rectum) – for genitoanal pruritus (itching in the area of the genitals and anus).
  • If necessary, computed tomography (CT).
  • H2 breath tests (lactose H2 breath test, fructose H2 breath test, possibly also sorbitol H2 breath test) – to exclude lactose, fructose or sorbitol tolerance in genital pruritus of unclear genesis. In this test procedure, a baseline determination of the hydrogen concentration in the exhaled air is made prior to the start of the examination; the affected person is then asked to ingest the test sugar (either a lactose, fructose or sorbitol solution) and the hydrogen concentration in the exhaled air is then measured every ten minutes over a period of three to four hours; if the measured values deviate from the baseline value by more than 20 ppm (parts per million), the findings are to be regarded as pathological. [obligatory for the main symptom meteorism.]