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Vaginal Microbiome Screening
Understand your risk of vaginal infections, fertility implications, and other gynae health complications using a non-invasive at-home tampon screen.
Your gynae health, deciphered
Detect bacteria that cause vaginal yeast infections
Understand your risk of contracting STIs and UTIs
Check for microbes that make it more difficult to conceive
Determine if your IVF cycle is less likely to be successful
Learn about risks of pregnancy complications and gynae cancers
Vaginal micro-what?
Your vagina is home to billions of bacteria, which make up your vaginal microbiome. When you have more bad than good bacteria, your risk of infections increases. Screening your microbiome can be the first step to better gynaecological health.
Tampons do it better
Tampons take better, more accurate samples than a standard swab
They allow for comfortable, at-home testing
Forget the pain of fumbling with a pokey swab
Complete with an applicator designed for super smooth insertion
How does the screening work?
STEP 1
Get a kit delivered to your door
STEP 2
Activate your kit online by answering our medical questionnaire
STEP 3
Collect and ship back the tampon sample to our partner lab
STEP 4
Get easy to understand results online
STEP 5
Connect to vetted specialists and request treatment
Not just results. Get personalised care and treatments too.
Getting screened with us means never meeting dead-end results. We offer specialist aftercare, tailored to you.See our Founder’s results!
Wondering what we test for, and what results look like? Enter your email below and Valentina, our Founder, will send you her screening report.By entering your email above you agree to receive marketing emails and promotions from Daye.
Get a 360° look at your vaginal flora
lactobacilli
These are the good bacteria in your vaginal microbiome, responsible for warding off infections. Low numbers of them can predict different issues.Yeast-like fungi
Candida is a fungus which affects 75% of women. It is the most common cause of yeast infections like thrush.
anaerobic bacteria
These microorganisms are the culprit behind infections like bacterial vaginosis (BV).Mycoplasma & ureaplasma
These are bacteria that can cause inflammation in the lower urogenital tract and, according to studies, can affect fertility.Who is the screening for and how often should you do it?
Leading an active sex life or suffering from recurrent vaginal infections?
Screen 2-4 times per year or when symptoms appear, to check for infection-causing microbes, as well as the amount of good bacteria.
Looking to conceive soon or currently pregnant?
Screen 2 times per year to make sure there aren’t any bacteria putting your fertility or future pregnancy at risk.
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Going through an IVF cycle or having fertility issues?
Screen one-off and make sure your vaginal flora isn't inhibiting your fertility.
Experiencing (peri) menopause?
Screen 2 times per year until you find the interventions that relieve your symptoms for good.
Your de-identified data will be used to advance gynae care
Your medical data will be de-identified and double-encrypted. That means no one at Daye, nor any of our partners will ever be able to link your results to you personally. Your de-identified data will be shared pro-bono with research institutions like Liverpool Women’s Hospital for one purpose only: to advance gynaecological health and bridge the gender gap in medical research.
Frequently asked questions
Think of it as the immune system to your reproductive tract. It comprises good bacteria (lactobacilli) and disruptive microorganisms (yeasts, viruses). A healthy vaginal microbiome is one where the good bacteria keep the disruptive ones in check, preventing them from growing out of control and causing an infection. Having a balanced microbiome has been linked to a lower risk of vaginal infections, STIs, and reproductive difficulties. Understanding your vaginal microbiome composition can help you better manage your gynaecological health.
The tampon offers a non-invasive, familiar method of obtaining a testing sample that makes the screening experience more comfortable and accessible for all. Further, tampons collect a comprehensive sample from the entirety of the vaginal canal, allowing for greater accuracy compared to traditional methods like swabs. The applicator enables the smooth insertion in the vagina, and it also prevents the tampon from being contaminated during insertion.
There are several studies that show the correlation between having a healthy vaginal microbiome and a lower risk of getting vaginal yeast infections, a lower risk of contracting STIs, improved fertility and lower risks of miscarriage and pre-term birth, and a lower risk of developing gynaecological cancers. Please scroll down the page to see more references.
We will analyse your microbiome for lactobacilli (the good, protective bacteria), Gardnerella Vaginalis and Prevotella (anaerobic bacteria, linked to BV), Candida (yeast, linked to thrush), Mycoplasma hominis, Mycoplasma genitalium and Ureaplasma parvum and urealyticum, commonly linked to reproductive difficulties and vaginal infections.
STI testing and screening for other diseases will not be available in the first version of VMS, however, we’re working hard to include these options in the near future, including STI & HPV screening.
Daye's personalised recommendations go beyond over the counter medication and specialist consultations. We also help you make lifestyle changes to improve your gynaecological health. Did you know that everything from your contraception, to condoms, to underwear materials can impact the composition of good and bad bacteria in your vagina? Stay in the know with Daye's screen and invest in interventions that actually work.
Using the kit at home is super easy — you just need to insert the provided tampon, wear it for at least 20 minutes (and up to 8 hours), and then put it in the pouches you have received in the kit, freeze it overnight and ship it back to us in the same box you received initially (minimise waste!) Half an hour of your time and a short walk to the post box or your local corner store is all you’ll need to do in order to stay in control of your gynae health.
No, in order to take a sample at least 5 days must have passed since your last period ended. There are a few other requirements — no antibiotics or antifungals in the last 30 days, and no douching, penetrative vaginal sex, and vaginally applied meds or creams in the 24 hours before. That will ensure your microbiome is in a stable state and that your results are not inconclusive.
We’re partnering with several UKAS-accredited labs in the UK.
At Daye, we believe in building products that are rooted in scientific rigour. This means that we never want to get ahead of the science available. Like many other areas of gynaecological health, vaginal microbiome research has been underfunded for decades.
Vaginal microbiome screening is also not a common practice in clinical care today unless you go private.
A vaginal microbiome screen is used to understand the composition of bacteria in your vaginal microbome. This can help you identify the presence of pathogens, which could be causing you recurrent vaginal infections (Candida, Gardnerella) or preventing you from becoming pregnant (Ureaplasma, Mycoplasma). If you're peri-menopausal or menopausal, you may want to increase your lactobacilli count so as to fight off vaginal dryness. If you have suffered recurrent UTIs, you may find a disrupted vaginal microbiome to be the cause. Knowing that you have a low lactobacilli count can also help you and your physician make informed decisions on your risk of a recurrent miscarriage or pre-term labour.
Not every physician, however, will recommend a vaginal microbiome screen, due to the method not being widespread yet. Please feel free to consult with your doctor before purchasing this test. If you require a simple bacterial vaginosis or candida test, you can get one for free from your local sexual health clinic.
It's also important to note that by testing your vaginal microbiome you are contributing to an increased global understanding of the best ways to detect and manage gynaecological health diseases, in turn bridging the gender gap in medical research and innovation.
Relevant Research
Diagnosis of bacterial vaginosis on self-collected vaginal tampon specimens
2002 • P D J Sturm, P Moodley, G Nzimande
Results of the tampon and vaginal smears showed excellent agreement for both observers (Spearman >0.80). The overall sensitivity and specificity were 91.7% (95% CI: 81.6-96.5) and 79.3% (95% CI: 67.2-87.8), respectively, using the Amsel criteria as reference standard. The tampon provides a specimen for the combined diagnosis of non-ulcerative STIs and BV.
A Self-Administered Technique for the Detection of Sexually Transmitted Diseases in Remote Communities
1997 • Sepehr N. Tabrizi, Barbara Paterson, Christopher K. Fairley, Francis J. Bowden, Suzanne M. Garland
The detection of each organism was significantly greater by PCR in tampon-collected samples than by routine conventional methods (P < .01).
Pilot study of the utility and acceptability of tampon sampling for the diagnosis of Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Chlamydia trachomatis infections by duplex realtime polymerase chain reaction in United Kingdom sex workers
2010 • P T Kimmitt, S N Tabrizi, M Crosatti, S M Garland Frcpa, P C Schober, K Rajakumar, C A Chapman
Besides near-universal acceptability of tampon sampling, the tampon sampling–PCR approach described in this study appeared to have enhanced sensitivity compared with conventional testing.
Vaginal microbiome and sexually transmitted infections: an epidemiologic perspective
2011 • Rebecca M. Brotman
Vaginal bacterial communities are thought to help prevent sexually transmitted infections. Bacterial vaginosis (BV) is a common clinical syndrome in which the protective lactic acid-producing bacteria (mainly species of the Lactobacillus genus) are supplanted by a diverse array of anaerobic bacteria. Epidemiologically, BV has been shown to be an independent risk factor for adverse outcomes including preterm birth, development of pelvic inflammatory disease, and acquisition of sexually transmitted infections. Longitudinal studies of the vaginal microbiome using molecular techniques such as 16S ribosomal DNA analysis may lead to interventions that shift the vaginal microbiota toward more protective states.
The Vaginal Microenvironment: The Physiologic Role of Lactobacilli
2018 • Emmanuel Amabebe, Dilly O. C. Anumba
Lactobacilli and their antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory products along with components of the epithelial mucosal barrier provide an effective first-line defence against invading pathogens including bacterial vaginosis, aerobic vaginitis-associated bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa. An optimal host-microbial interaction is required for the maintenance of eubiosis and vaginal health.
The role of Escherichia coli in reproductive health
2017 • P Cools
Vaginal dysbiosis has been associated with increased susceptibility to and transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections and increased risk of pelvic inflammatory disease, preterm birth and maternal and neonatal infections.
Pregnancy's Stronghold on the Vaginal Microbiome
2014 • Marina R. S. Walther-António, Patricio Jeraldo, Margret E. Berg Miller, Carl J. Yeoman, Karen E. Nelson, Brenda A. Wilson, Bryan A. White, Nicholas Chia, Douglas J. Creedon
Our analyses indicate normal pregnancy is characterized by a microbiome that has low diversity and high stability. While Lactobacillus species strongly dominate the vaginal environment during pregnancy across the two studied ethnicities, observed differences between the longitudinal dynamics of the analyzed populations may contribute to divergent risk for pregnancy complications. This helps establish a baseline for investigating the role of the microbiome in complications of pregnancy such as preterm labour and preterm delivery.
The vaginal microbiome as a tool to predict IVF success
2020 • Sam Schoenmakers, Joop Laven
The vaginal composition prior to the start of hormonal treatment for ART seems to be predictive of in vitro fertilization/in vitro fertilization-intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF/IVF-ICSI) outcome, with mainly a highly negative predictive value.
Early pregnancy vaginal microbiome trends and preterm birth
2017 • Molly J. Stout, Yanjiao Zhou, Kristine M. Wylie, Phillip I. Tarr, George A. Macones, Methodius G. Tuuli
In a predominantly African-American population, a significant decrease of vaginal microbial community richness and diversity is associated with preterm birth. The timing of this suppression appears early in pregnancy, between the first and second trimesters, suggesting that early gestation may be an ecologically important time for events that ordain subsequent term and preterm birth outcomes.
The role of the vaginal microbiome in gynaecological cancer
2017 • M Champer, A M Wong, J Champer, I L Brito, P W Messer, J Y Hou, J D Wright
Human microbiome research has shown commensal bacteria to be a major factor in both wellness and disease pathogenesis. Interest in the microbiome has recently expanded beyond the gut to include a multitude of other organ systems for which the microbiome may have health implications. Here, we review the role of the vaginal microbiome in health and disease, with a particular focus on gynecologic malignancies. Further, we suggest that it may be possible to expand the use of probiotics in the treatment of gynaecological cancers.
Association between polycystic ovary syndrome and the vaginal microbiome: A case-control study
2020 • Xiang Hong, Pengfei Qin, Kaiping Huang, Xiaoling Ding, Jun Ma, Yan Xuan, Xiaoyue Zhu, Danhong Peng, Bei Wang
There was significant difference in vaginal bacterial structures between PCOS and healthy control women. The relative abundance of Lactobacillus crispatus in the PCOS group was significantly lower than controls (P = .001), and the relative abundance of Mycoplasma and Prevotella was higher than controls (P < .001, P = .002, respectively). The Mycoplasma genus could be a potential biomarker for PCOS screening, as ROC analysis showed that the area under the curve (AUC) for the relative abundance of Mycoplasma was 0.958 (95% CI: 0.901-0.999).
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