The impact of tampon use on the vaginal microbiota
The impact of tampon use on the vaginal microbiota
We conducted a cohort study with crossover design to assess the impact of tampon use on the composition and dynamics of the vaginal microbiota. Women self-collected vaginal swabs twice weekly for four menstrual cycles and used tampons as assigned during each menstrual cycle. We used 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to characterize vaginal microbiota composition at each time point and observed a significant trend of decreased vaginal microbiota stability during menses compared to elsewhere during the menstrual cycle.