Self Care Articles

Is this your child's symptom?

• Genital symptoms in teen girls (after puberty)
• Symptoms include pain, itching, discharge, bleeding and rashes
• Vaginal discharge is the most common problem
• This care guide covers symptoms not caused by an injury

Symptoms Covered in this Topic

• Vaginal symptoms include discharge, bleeding and pain.
• Vulva symptoms include itching, pain and pain when passing urine.
• Genital area skin symptoms include itching, pain, rash and swelling.

Vaginal Discharge in Teens: Normal versus Not normal

• A clear or whitish discharge is normal.
• Yellow or green vaginal discharge can mean an infection.
• A bad-smelling discharge is also not normal.
• An abnormal discharge can also cause a genital rash.

Causes of Abnormal Vaginal Discharge in Teens

• Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) are infections that can be passed from either the female or male partner to the other.
• Gonorrhea and Chlamydia are the most well-known. Symptoms include yellow or green vaginal discharge, pain with passing urine, pelvic pain, and bleeding.
• Another STI is Trichomoniasis. It causes a foamy, yellow-green foul-smelling discharge. Both partners need to be treated with antibiotics to prevent it from coming back.
• Vaginal discharge with vulval itching in teens is usually a yeast infection. Symptoms are a thick, white, cottage cheese-like discharge. This kind of discharge has no smell to it. Bacterial vaginosis gives a white-gray discharge, fishy odor discharge. Both only occur in females and are not STIs.
• Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID) is an infection of the tubes connecting the ovaries to the uterus. PID is a serious infection which requires hospital admission and antibiotics by vein. The symptoms of PID include lower abdomen or pelvic pain, fever and vaginal discharge.
• Vaginal Foreign Objects (such as a forgotten tampon) can cause a vaginal infection and discharge.