Ureaplasma in women: causes and symptoms, norm and methods of treatment

Others, called pathogens, are capable of causing serious harm, and some of them (opportunistic pathogens) can live for quite a long time next to the cells of the human body without showing pathogenic activity until they find themselves in favorable conditions for reproduction.

In particular, one of these microorganisms is ureaplasma, which belongs to the genus Mycoplasma and in its properties is a cross between viruses and organisms consisting of a single cell. Its peculiarity is that it does not have a cell wall, like all mycoplasmas.

To date, there is no consensus on how dangerous it is to human health. Some scientists argue that a large number of people who are sexually active can be carriers of ureaplasma without being sick. Other scientists cite reliable data that a few days after the introduction of a pure culture of this pathogen into the urethra of male volunteers, inflammation of the urethra (urethritis) occurred with all its symptoms. Most modern doctors ureaplasma refers to conditionally pathogenic microorganisms.

What is ureaplasma in women?

It is known that ureaplasma in women can manifest itself as a pathogenic organism, provoking such inflammatory processes in the urogenital area as cystitis, colpitis, cervical erosion, inflammation of the uterine appendages, plays a significant role in miscarriage or in premature birth. On the other hand, ureaplasma exhibits such properties only under conditions when, for some reason, the body’s defenses stop working, unlike chlamydia and genital mycoplasmas, which are reliably identified as pathogenic microorganisms. So, in a healthy woman, the norm of ureaplasma can be no more than 10 to the 4th degree.

Doctors definitely recommend treating ureaplasma during pregnancy, in preparation for in vitro fertilization or other gynecological operations, because even a small amount of these microorganisms during pregnancy or after surgery can increase dramatically. During pregnancy, the body’s defenses fall or are redirected to bear the unborn baby for many months. Then some infections can become more active, in addition, there is an opportunity for the reproduction of new pathogens. Much attention is paid during examinations to such types of ureaplasma in women as Ureaplasma parvum and Ureaplasma urealyticum. It is believed that the latter has a more active effect on the occurrence of diseases of the genitourinary system in women than ureaplasma parvum.

Symptoms of ureaplasma in women

With the help of modern diagnostics, this pathogen can often be detected in women who have no complaints about the functioning of the genitourinary system, because ureaplasmosis as such does not bother patients much, and often may not appear at all. Since the symptoms of ureaplasma in women do not have a clear severity, and depend on which organ was affected by this infection, it can be difficult for doctors to determine whether this particular microorganism was the root cause of the disease or only intensified the existing inflammatory process.

Once in the genitourinary system, secreting special proteins, the ureaplasma attaches to its walls and begins its reproduction. At this time, the main factor in protecting internal organs from it is the normal microflora, in particular lactobacilli, which maintain an acidic environment in which ureaplasma is not able to greatly increase its numbers. Accordingly, even after getting inside the body of a woman, ureaplasma is capable of not revealing itself for a long time.

After prolonged use of antibiotics or serious surgical interventions, when general immunity is disturbed, and with it the internal ratio of microorganisms, the amount of ureaplasma can begin to increase rapidly, suppressing the reproduction of beneficial bacteria. Thus, even without being the root cause of a particular inflammatory process, but only creating a favorable background for its own development and for the development of other pathogenic bacteria (for example, chlamydia, gonococci, Staphylococcus aureus), ureaplasma can cause significant damage to those organs that fall on her ways. Signs of ureaplasma in women begin to appear after 3-5 weeks from that moment in the form of burning or itching when urinating, low temperature, discharge and discomfort in the perineum. The disease itself can proceed as in acute,

If the immune system is severely weakened, and the activity of one’s own lactobacilli is seriously reduced, then ureaplasma can continue to develop deeper into the genitourinary system, contributing to the development of endometritis, cervicitis, or inflammation of the appendages. Symptoms of endometritis will already be violations of the monthly cycle, long and heavy bleeding, pulling pains in the lower abdomen. In the inflammatory process in the fallopian tubes, so-called adhesions can occur, which play a significant role in infertility or the occurrence of an ectopic pregnancy.

You should pay attention to the following symptoms, which may indicate an increase in ureaplasma in women:

• some clear discharge;
• burning sensation or even pain when urinating;
• severe pulling pain in the lower abdomen in the intervals between menstruation.

The consequences of untreated ureaplasma in women can be inflammation and adhesions in the fallopian tubes, various pathologies of the uterus and ovaries, miscarriages or premature births. After the passage of a child (especially a premature one) through the birth canal of an infected woman with ureaplasma, bronchopulmonary diseases may develop.

However, many doctors do not consider the presence of ureaplasma in the body as the main cause of infertility and miscarriage, since the ability to become pregnant and bear a child is often affected not by the presence of a particular pathogen, but by the presence of an inflammatory process in the internal organs. You need to know that ureaplasmosis detected during pregnancy will not be an indication for its interruption, but it will need to be subjected to medical supervision and treatment. At the stage of pregnancy planning, ureaplasma detected in a woman is a reason for examination and treatment of her partner as well, since ureaplasmosis can contribute to the violation of his reproductive function.

Causes of ureaplasma in women

Of course, having learned about such serious consequences of untreated ureaplasmosis, many will wonder where ureaplasma comes from in women. Since this infection belongs to the category of sexual, it is transmitted through unprotected condom sexual contact with an infected partner or with frequent changes of sexual partners. But this method is not the only way to get this pathogen into the body. Although ureaplasmosis is a sexual infection, even newborns can become infected with it. If the mother had this disease before and during pregnancy, then there is a high probability that the fetus will also be infected during the passage of the birth canal. At the same time, in a small child, this disease will manifest itself primarily not on the genitals, but on the membranes of the nasopharynx and respiratory tract, developing into bronchitis or pneumonia.

So, there are several reasons for getting this infection into the body:

• infection with ureaplasmas in women sexually from an infected man is in the first place among other causes of ureaplasmosis, and this fact has a serious evidence base;
• in girls and girls who have not yet had a sexual life, the detected ureaplasma could have come from an infected mother’s body during childbirth;
• although there is no reliable evidence of contact-household infection, nevertheless, this method may be one of the causes of ureaplasma in women, since there is scientific evidence of the ability of ureaplasmas to survive for some time outside the human body on underwear or other clothing, on the surface of a bathroom or toilet, saunas, swimming pools, showers in public places. For example, seating in public women’s toilets was examined by PCR, and ureaplasma urealiticum was detected on some of them.

Diagnosis and treatment of ureaplasma in women

Diagnosis of ureaplasmosis in modern medicine is carried out by several methods, of which the most common are the PCR method (stands for "polymerase chain reaction") and the bacteriological (cultural) method. With the help of PCR, the actual DNA of the pathogen is determined. This method is used primarily to determine the presence of a pathogen in the body, and the negative result obtained indicates that there is no ureaplasma in the body. However, this method does not determine the number of microorganisms if the result is positive.

With the help of the cultural method, it is possible to accurately determine the number of microorganisms. For bacteriological culture, a swab is placed in a nutrient medium on which they are grown.

If the number of microorganisms found is less than 10 to the 4th degree and there are no obvious manifestations of the inflammatory process, then treatment is prescribed only for women planning pregnancy. Often, a doctor may prescribe immunomodulatory drugs to help the body fight the infection on its own.

If the cultural analysis showed an excess of this norm, then the doctor will prescribe the treatment of ureaplasma to the woman, possibly with the use of antibiotics. In this case, you need to know that the causative agent of ureaplasmosis quite easily adapts to various classes of antibiotics. Treatment usually consists of antibiotics of the macrolide or quinolone group, since many authors of scientific studies note its resistance to tetracyclines, which were previously used to treat this infection. Studies in 2019 revealed the presence in women of strains of ureaplasma parvum, which were resistant even to antibiotics of the quinolone series (ofloxacin, pefloxacin) and the macrolide group (erythromycin, azithromycin).

In this regard, it must be understood that only a doctor will be able, by means of a cultural analysis to determine the sensitivity of ureaplasmas to antibiotics, to determine how to properly treat ureaplasma in a woman and prescribe the right drug, especially since during pregnancy, many of the listed antibiotics are simply dangerous to life and health future child. After the treatment, several control tests are prescribed for the amount of the pathogen in the body.

Moreover, if a woman has a permanent sexual partner, then the examination can often be prescribed for him. It may not be uncommon for one of the partners to have clinical manifestations of inflammation (discharge from the genital tract, itching, burning during urination, etc.) and the analysis shows the level of ureaplasma above normal. At the same time, the partner does not have signs of an inflammatory process, but during the analysis, these microorganisms are found in him up to 10 to 4 degrees. In this case, the doctor will definitely prescribe treatment for both partners, since one of them cannot cope with the presence of these pathogens that contribute to inflammation of the internal organs, and unprotected sexual contact will cause new consequences.

Methods for the prevention of ureaplasmosis will be, first of all, the use of a condom during sexual intercourse and careful observance of the rules of personal hygiene in public places. In addition, you need to know that normally the genitourinary system in a healthy person is tuned to prevent the reproduction of foreign microorganisms inside. In women, the main role is played by the level of acidity in the reproductive system, since the acidic environment does not allow opportunistic microorganisms to multiply. After diseases (general and genitourinary), as well as other violations of the microflora, the level of acidity changes, and the local defense of the body decreases sharply, which allows pathogens of the urogenital area to quickly begin to multiply.

Also, a significant role in the prevention and treatment of ureaplasma in women is played by the prevention of a weakening of the overall immune system. Including this is influenced by a healthy diet (with a large amount of fruits and vegetables and a minimum content of easily digestible carbohydrates such as cakes and pastries in the diet), an active lifestyle, preventing hypothermia of the genitourinary organs (contributing to the development of infectious organisms), outdoor exercise (or at least walks), which have a positive effect on the work of the immune system, strengthening it and allowing you to resist various infections, including sexual ones.