[Investigation of Trichomonas vaginalis in patients with nonspecific vaginal discharge].

Trichomoniasis, a protozoan infection, has a worldwide distribution and is the most common nonviral, sexually transmitted disease. In this study, we examined the vaginal swab samples of 114 patients who presented at the obstetrics and gynecology outpatient clinic in Ankara in 2004, for the presence of Trichomonas vaginalis (T. vaginalis) using direct microscopy and culture methods. The samples were taken from patients with nonspecific vaginal discharge during their gynecological examination. Twenty of the samples were obtained from postmenopausal women. T. vaginalis was found in 8 (7%) out of 114 patients and 2 of the samples were from post menopausal women. As a result, the T. vaginalis rate among patients who presenting at outpatient clinics with nonspecific vaginal dis-charge was found to be comparable with the results of the other studies which were carried out in Ankara and other regions of Turkey. Further studies with more samples are needed in order to explain the high rate found among postmenopausal women in this study.