Background:

Vaginal conditions are the most common reason for women to seek medical care, with an overall prevalence ranging from 23 to 29% in women of reproductive age. Bacterial vaginosis is one of the main causes of these conditions, and the most frequently identified etiological agent is Gardnerella vaginalis, however, its diagnosis is difficult since it requires enriched and artificial selective culture media.

Objective:

To determine the frequency of G. vaginalis by nucleic acid amplification using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in cervicovaginal samples from patients attending a third level institute.

Method:

One hundred twenty-one cervicovaginal samples were analyzed for molecular detection of 16S ribosomal RNA from G. vaginalis.

Results:

G. vaginalis was detected in 34 samples, of these, 23 were from pregnant women and 11 from non-pregnant women.

Conclusion:

Endpoint PCR detected three times more the presence of G. vaginalis than artificial culture medium.