ISSN: 0973-7510

E-ISSN: 2581-690X

Research Article | Open Access
Syeda Tamanna Yasmin1, Kandarpa K. Saikia2, Saswati Sanyal Choudhury3, Pranjal Kr. Chakravartty4 and Monika Soni1
1Department of Biosciences, Assam Don Bosco University, Sonapur, Assam, India.
2Department of Bioengineering and Technology, Gauhati University, Guwahati, Assam, India.
3Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, Guwahati, Assam, India.
4State Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist, PMU-ASSIST Project under AHIDMS, Medical Education and Research Department, Government of Assam, Guwahati, Assam, India.
Article Number: 11058 | © The Author(s). 2026
J Pure Appl Microbiol. 2026;20(1):590-596. https://doi.org/10.22207/JPAM.20.1.44
Received: 16 October 2025 | Accepted: 14 January 2026 | Published online: 02 March 2026
Issue online: March 2026
Abstract

The vaginal microbiome plays a vital role in maintaining reproductive health. Vaginal pH serves as a simple yet reliable clinical marker reflecting microbial balance. A healthy vaginal environment is typically dominated by Lactobacillus species, which help maintain an acidic pH that inhibits colonization by pathogenic organisms. An increase in vaginal pH disrupts this balance and is associated with leukorrhea, infertility, preterm birth, and increased susceptibility to sexually transmitted infections (STIs). This study aimed to determine the association between vaginal pH and microbial community composition in women attending a tertiary healthcare center. A total of 50 vaginal swab samples were analysed using standard culture and biochemical methods, and vaginal pH was categorized as low (≤4.5), mid (4.6-5.5), or high (>5.5). Elevated pH values were frequently associated with pathogenic organisms such as Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Gardnerella vaginalis, whereas low pH corresponded to predominance of Lactobacillus species. Candida albicans was detected across a wide pH range. These findings demonstrate that vaginal pH is closely linked to microbial profiles, where high pH reflects dysbiosis and low pH indicates a healthy vaginal ecosystem. Routine monitoring of vaginal pH may therefore serve as a useful tool in guiding diagnostic and therapeutic decisions in gynecological practice.

Keywords

Vaginal pH, Microbiome, Microbial Communities, Vaginal Health, Bacteria

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© The Author(s) 2026. Open Access. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License which permits unrestricted use, sharing, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.