Vaginal discharge is an absolutely normal phenomenon for women aged between puberty and menopause. This is defined as a small amount of fluid flowing out of one’s vagina taking old cells out with it. The vaginal discharge helps women to clean the vagina, keep it lubricated and free from various infections. This, if irregular, can however indicate a problem.

Normally vaginal discharge is clear or milky white fluid and this does not posses any disturbing odour. This fluid can also appear thicker at specific times such as menstrual cycle, during breastfeeding or while the woman is sexually aroused. This discharge varies in thickness from person to person.

However, this is not the case many times. Often a woman sees that her vaginal discharge has changed. This change can occur in terms of colour, consistency or amount, presence of itching, discomfort, any rash or a burning sensation during urination, presence of blood when it’s not menstruation time and of course odour.

A foul, more accurately fishy, odour associated with a yellowish, grayish or greenish colour in vaginal discharge should be a mandatory reason for paying a visit to a doctor immediately so that diagnosis and treatment can be started as soon as possible.

Vaginal discharge symptom is the collective name given to all the diseases that can present their symptoms in form of abnormal vaginal discharge. Different changes mean different problems. The most prominent 5 vaginal discharge symptoms can be listed as an odourous vaginal discharge, light and yellow-coloured vaginal discharge, vaginal dryness and watery feeling, white, yellow or green vaginal discharge and frequent infections of different kinds in the vagina.

Perhaps the most prominent vaginal discharge symptom is an odourous vaginal discharge. It can sometimes be an indication of bacterial vaginosis. Mostly the odour will be fishy and sometimes can be smelt after vaginal intercourse. This may be rarely associated with vaginal itching and reddening.

The second most notable vaginal discharge symptom is yellow coloured and light vaginal discharge which can refer to Chlamydia infection, which is a serious sexually transmitted disease (STD).

Next comes the feeling of vaginal dryness and watery vagina. An unusual dryness in vagina may refer to diabetes when watery and blood-tinged discharge may point to a lot more serious diseases such as vaginal, cervical or uterus cancer.

The fourth most notable vaginal symptom would be a vaginal discharge that is white yellow or even green in colour. This may point to leucorrhea.

The last but not the least vaginal discharge symptom would be frequent vaginal yeast infection (sometimes oral, too) and bacterial vaginosis. This may refer to HIV/AIDS, one of the challenges still faced by the medical community.