Hypertrophic Vulvar Dystrophy

Hypertrophic vulvar dystrophy means the skin of the vulva has grown thicker than it should be.

Associated with this thickening are the symptoms of intense itching and burning. These cases present clinically as patients with vulvar itching, initially believed to be yeast, which have failed to respond to standard anti-fungal therapy.

On close inspection, the skin has a patchy white discoloration. A vulvar biopsy confirms the diagnosis.

Treatment is topical steroids, used to thin the skin and relieve the symptoms.

Watch a Video Demonstrating How to Perform a Vulvar Biopsy

An extra feature provided by the Brookside Associates Medical Education Division

Vulvar biopsy is very important in these cases since differentiating visually between Hypertrophic vulvar dystrophy, lichen sclerosis, and VIN (vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia) is difficult and the treatments are very different. Further, mixed dystrophies (hypertrophic in some areas, and lichen sclerosis in other areas.) are common.

Note to readers from the Brookside Associates:
Operational Obstetrics & Gynecology was released in 2000. There is a newer product, Military Obstetrics & Gynecology available here.

Bureau of Medicine and Surgery
Department of the Navy
2300 E Street NW
Washington, D.C.
20372-5300

Operational Obstetrics & Gynecology - 2nd Edition
The Health Care of Women in Military Settings
CAPT Michael John Hughey, MC, USNR
NAVMEDPUB 6300-2C
January 1, 2000

Approved for public release; Distribution is unlimited.
The listing of any non-Federal product in this CD is not an endorsement of the product itself, but simply an acknowledgement of the source.

Bureau of Medicine and Surgery
Department of the Navy
2300 E Street NW
Washington, D.C
20372-5300

Operational Medicine
Health Care in Military Settings
CAPT Michael John Hughey, MC, USNR
NAVMED P-5139
January 1, 2001

United States Special Operations Command
7701 Tampa Point Blvd.
MacDill AFB, Florida
33621-5323

*This web version is provided by The Brookside Associates Medical Education Division. It contains original contents from the official US Navy NAVMED P-5139, but has been reformatted for web access and includes advertising and links that were not present in the original version. This web version has not been approved by the Department of the Navy or the Department of Defense. The presence of any advertising on these pages does not constitute an endorsement of that product or service by either the US Department of Defense or the Brookside Associates. The Brookside Associates is a private organization, not affiliated with the United States Department of Defense.

Operational Medicine 2001
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