We studied 584 low income women in order to determine the etiology of their discharge; bacterial vaginosis (nonspecific vaginitis) was found to be most prevalent (34.8%) followed by cadidiasis (9,4%) and trichomoniasis (4,5%); there were also mixed infections (7,2%). Candidiasis, trichomoniasis and mixed infections, but not bacterial vaginosis, were significantly more frequent in pregnant women. We stress the feasibility of diagnosing bacterial vaginosis by applying easily determined criteria.
