Bartholin Cyst - GRRRRR!

Hey folks..... For those who don't know (most people probably!) a Bartholin cyst is a cyst in the lubrication glands surrounding the vagina. Lovely. More info here.
A bit of background... I first had this problem in 2000... it got so bad I had to go to casualty and have surgery to have it fixed. Every doctor I saw about it said "they come back" but thank god it didn't - for seven years. Then in October 2007 I got it again. This time I found it quite early, and using heat packs and hot baths it resolved after a couple of weeks. Then it came back when I was 4.5 months pregnant. OB prescribed mild antibiotics, but it was too little too late, and he had to drain it under local anaesthetic (just in his office) and sent me off with abs, stronger this time. All healed up and no more problems until about 5 weeks after DD was born. I felt it coming back, and I was going for my 6 week check up anyway so talked to the OB about it. he gave me a script for ABs, and said take them until it clears up and gave me another script in case it came back later. Basically the only way to cure it as such is the same surgery I had last time but b/c I'm breastfeeding and it requires a GA and overnight stay in hospital he's not keen to go that route. Neither am I for that matter. So I took the first course of ABs... it was better, but not completely gone. So I took the second round of ABs. Now it is still there! GRRRRRRRR it doesn't seem to be getting worse but it's irritating and its interfering with our sex life because DTD is pretty painful (that's how I was sure it was still there). So now I don't know what to do about it. Do I go back and get more AB's? Do I wait and see if it gets worse (not keen on that). And as for how you guys can help (other than just listening to me rant) does anyone know of any alternative therapies that might help with this? Acupuncture? Herbs? Homeopathy? Anything???? Anyone had success clearing this problem up without surgery? Thanks for listening and :pray: someone has some suggestions!

I had one recently too and I could hardly sit it was that big and painful. I only needed 1 course of abs to clear it though and mr GP said that if I presented while it was at it's worst he would have excised it. I have no idea of other treatments though.

i can't suggest any alternate therapies - i had one several years ago that, in the matter of 2 days after it appeared, grew to the size of a golf ball, ended up in casualty at the hospital at 3am, in for surgery at 5pm - they basically opened it up, and left it open to drain and so that it coudnt form again

hope someone can suggest something to tide you over hun

BG

Thanks guys it's nice to know I'm not alone at least!

Well I'd never had one before and I had no idea what it was. I only asked the Dr about it because I was having a pap smear done and was over the worst of it by then anyway (it was only about golf ball size by then). I assumed it was because I'd been sick earlier that week with a sore throat and it was just swollen glands from being sick kwim?

I don't think they would excise it at the moment, it is only about the size of a pea ... but I don't want to be on antibiotics all the time, especially if they're not making it better..... it's just so annoying! But I know what you mean, it's not something that you hear about but apparently they're not that uncommon. Guess it's not exactly dinner party conversation hey?

i'd never heard of it when i first went to the GP when mine flared up - she gave me a referral to gyne for during the week, but if it got worse, ER over the weekend - this was saturday morning - by early sunday i couldn't move - off to the ER, where they were CLUELESS, and put me on a saline drip - ummm yeah great - pump me full of fluid so i need to pee MORE - as if it wasn't painful enough!

I was lucky when I first had it, my local hospital was Royal Womens' so they knew exactly what to do. By the time I got there I could hardly walk!

I have one, mine isnt painful and its n the cervix. I am having a d&c to remove a uterine polyp next week but the FS is leaving the cyst in, she said they are quite normal etc. So I am now a lil confused by it all. I have no advice but who knows maybe aromatherapy and naturopathy could help, it couldnt hurt to see if it does. I wish you all the best!

ON other thing I completely forgot to mention was that my GP wanted me tested for Chlamydia as well as that can be a cause of them. I only remembered I had the test done when I saw him on Monday (for a different problem) that he told me the test for it came back clear - well der! :rolleyes: I knew it couldn't have been that but anyway.