fumarates and Vaginitis

High performance ion exchange chromatography was employed to evaluate the presence of short chain organic acids in the vaginal fluid of a woman troubled by persistent foul vaginal odor, but who did not have typical bacterial vaginosis. The vaginal secretions from this patient were collected on a weighed cotton swab and eluted into water and extracted by acidified ether. Salts of the acids were back-extracted into aqueous solution and chromatographed on an H-form resin column and compared to commercially available standards. A strikingly large amount of caproic acid was found. The caproic acid disappeared after metronidazole therapy, and a subsequent follow-up chromatogram showed a predominance of lactic acid. The success of this technique in evaluating the present case suggests that such a method may prove useful in other types of vaginal infection.

Topics: Adult; Bacteria, Anaerobic; Bacterial Infections; Caproates; Chromatography, Ion Exchange; Decanoic Acids; Fatty Acids, Volatile; Female; Fumarates; Humans; Keto Acids; Lactates; Odorants; Vaginitis