Comparative study of the effects of metronidazole gel and Berberis vulgaris gel on the treatment of bacterial vaginosis

Abstract: Berberis vulgaris has been associated with various pharmacological properties such as antioxidant and antibacterial effects. Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is the most common infection in women within child bearing ages that creates gynecologic problems, pelvic infection, urinary tract infection, and malodorous discharges could lead to infertility, premature birth and miscarriage in women. This study was conducted to compare the effect of metronidazole gel and B. vulgaris gel on the treatment and recurrence of BV. This double-blind clinical trial was conducted on 80 women with BV who referred to women’s clinic in Hajar Hospital (southwestern Iran) in 2016 with convenience sampling. The diagnosis criteria were Amsel’s criteria, gram staining and culture. The participants were divided in 2 groups. First group received metronidazole gel 0.75 % for 5 nights and the second received B. vulgaris gel 5 % for 5 nights vaginally. The symptoms were evaluated at 7 and 21 day follow up. The descriptive and inferential statistics (chi square, t-test and ANOVA) were used to analyze the data using SPSS software. After 7 days of treatment, a significant difference was observed in terms of improving symptoms of irritation, dyspareunia and dysuria in both groups and this level was higher in the group taking B. vulgaris gel (P < 0.05). The results of recurrence of symptoms after 21 days of intervention showed that the complete recovery of various symptoms was significantly higher in B. vulgaris gel than the metronidazole gel group (P=0.001). B. vulgaris gel is more effective than metronidazole gel in treating bacterial vaginosis and could be considered as a new therapeutic approach in BV treatment.