Dr Lee said: 'The most effective solution is to prescribe the broadest-spectrum treatment at once so that it can provide immediate and effective relief.

'Then the patient can undergo more tests if the doctor thinks it is necessary.'

Ms Ang said: 'Dr Lee told me I very likely had a yeast infection, but since I had pain as well, he decided to do a culture of the discharge as he suspected there was also bacterial infection.'

Her culture was positive for bacteria.

So she had to undergo a course of antibiotics as well as a seven-day course of Neo-Penotran, which is inserted vaginally to target the affected area directly.

The itch went away immediately.

TOO MUCH SUGAR

An interesting trend Dr Lee noted was that after festive periods such as Christmas and the mid-autumn festival where many cakes and other sweet food items are served, he will see a surge in the number of vaginitis cases in the next two to three weeks.

This is because high sugar content in the urine encourages fungal growth.

Dr Lee said: 'You don't have to be diabetic to have sugar in the urine. Eating too many sweet things can also lead to sugar in the urine.'

This is something Ms Ang can identify with because she got her infection after the Christmas season last year.

'I have a very sweet tooth,' she said.

Another group of women Dr Lee sees are those who over-indulged during their holidays, for example, those who visited chocolate factories and ate lots of chocolate and ice cream.

Three in four women will experience at least one symptomatic yeast infection during their lifetime.

The most frequent symptoms are itching, burning and irritation of the vagina.

Painful urination and/or painful intercourse are also common symptoms.

Vaginal discharge is not always present and may be minimal.

The three main contributing causes of vaginitis:

BACTERIA

Most common cause of vaginitis symptoms among women of childbearing age. Untreated, it can develop into pelvic inflammatory disease, which can cause infertility and tubal (ectopic) pregnancy.

TRICHOMONIASIS

Sexually-transmitted disease that can cause adverse outcomes in pregnancy such as premature delivery and infants with low birth weight.

VAGINAL YEAST (CANDIDIASIS)

Common cause of vaginal irritation. Hint: It causes intense itchiness

This story was first published in The New Paper on Apr 10, 2008.