How are virgins examined by the gyno?

But some virgins have speculum examination so that I think that it might be possible to have trasnsvaginal ultrasound, too.

So most ultrasound societies deem virginity as contraindication for a transvaginal scan.

Unlike a speculum its moved around side to side up and down with varying degrees of pressure.

However if you are a consenting adult they will perform transvaginal scan if you prefer it that way rather than over tummy with a full bladder.

Its much better imaging internal compared to external.

Do you have one booked?

I was a virgin at my first gyn I exam. I was extremely nervous, and even had my mom come with me. The gyn was great and he took the time to explain everything before getting started. He even got out an extra set of the brushes used for the Pap smear and let me touch/feel them just to make me more comfortable. I don’t remember what type of speculum he used but there was a speculum and I just remember feeling pressure but nothing too uncomfortable. He also did a biannual exam. Overall not too bad. He made it a good experience.

In my experience absolutely not. For any medical needs you would get an ultrasound or some other type of external examination, but noone will ever put their fingers inside you if you're a virgin (and 100% consenting). This goes doubly if you're underage, as most virgins are, as you need the parents' consent.

Of course I'm speaking from my own experience in an European country so I guess things might be different elsewhere.

There are different ways to examine a virgin, there are small speculums And can be exam by Using a small scope to look through the hymen into the vagina. And they can also be examined through the rectum.

There are different ways to examine a virgin, there are small speculums And can be exam by Using a small scope to look through the hymen into the vagina. And they can also be examined through the rectum.

Nice info @Jill_h . I honestly didn't know about the scope or rectum. Since I was examined using small speculum when I was virgin at 16, I thought that was the only way. When I asked the doctor, isn't there any other way to check me. She only said, "this small speculum wouldn't hurt."

Hello,

Do virgins have transvaginal ultrasound examination?

Yes. Why wouldn’t one be performed if there is a valid medical need for it? The transducer wand is fairly narrow. There are several reasons to perform a transvaginal ultrasound in addition to the abdominal ultrasound after the bladder is emptied after that portion of the ultrasound is finished.

Yes. Why wouldn’t one be performed if there is a valid medical need for it? The transducer wand is fairly narrow. There are several reasons to perform a transvaginal ultrasound in addition to the abdominal ultrasound after the bladder is emptied after that portion of the ultrasound is finished.

If you are able to comfortably use tampons or had a bimanual exam then virgin or not a transvaginal scan shouldn't be an issue.

I known some centres won't do it on virginal patients under their protocol which is wrong, denying the more accurate test to someone based on if had sex or not is stupid. Physically no real difference between a virgin and someone who has had sex.

All stems back to old fashioned notion girls should be pure the hymen should not be broken.

First post reminds me, when my virgin high school girlfriend returned from her first gyn appointment I asked her all about it and she told me. She said the doctor examined her rectum and I asked why. She said it was because she was a virgin so it had to be done rectally but I don’t remember what she was referring to.

Interesting thread. With respect to the several questions about 'why would a virgin get a pelvic exam,' particularly if under the age where universal Pap smears are recommended -- the primary reason is for pelvic pain. I'm going to make a wild guess that the most common problem is a large ovarian cyst causing pain.

I would never withhold a transvaginal ultrasound from a virginal girl. The main reason I would do one (in a virgin) is to check for ovarian torsion. Neither a physical exam or a regular CT scan will show ovarian torsion. The ultrasound will show blood flow. If the torsion is compromising blood flow to the ovary -- that is a surgical emergency.

I would never withhold a transvaginal ultrasound from a virginal girl. The main reason I would do one (in a virgin) is to check for ovarian torsion. Neither a physical exam or a regular CT scan will show ovarian torsion. The ultrasound will show blood flow. If the torsion is compromising blood flow to the ovary -- that is a surgical emergency.

Wouldnt a transrectal ultrasound give the same insights, just from a different angle?

N.

Wouldnt a transrectal ultrasound give the same insights, just from a different angle?

N.

I am not a medical expert, but I can see a few advantages to have the test done vaginally:

- the ovaries, cervix an uterus are closer to the vagina than the rectum. Even in the vagina, I saw the doctor manouvering to see everything with my wife

- Although the probe is not really big, it still looks too big to be handled comfortably in the rectum. If I was a Virgin woman, I know what to choose, even with a more tight vagina.

It for whatever reason a vaginal echo cannot be taken, I think a doctor might choose to get a regular pelvic echo instead.

Perhaps a real professional can confirm.

Sometimes, terrible things happen.

An acquaintance of mine, in teenage years, was suspected by her mother of seeing boys and having sex. Her mother dragged her to the gynecologist in order to get birth control prescribed. (Yes, I know that one does not need a pelvic for that, that it's a question of hormones and certain blood tests, but back in those days women believed they needed a gyn exam for that, and in fact many physicians enforced that.) The mother was so persuaded her daughter, who was actually a virgin, was having sex and just lying about it, that she told the physician to disregard the girls' complaints. So basically the first thing the girl ever had in her vagina (apart perhaps from tampons) was a speculum, and it was very uncomfortable.

This probably violated several guidelines or laws about patient consent, but this was 30 years ago or so, when many "old school" physicians did not care much about them.

@Pecan_nutjob my story is very similar.

@Pecan_nutjob

So basically the first thing the girl ever had in her vagina (apart perhaps from tampons) was a speculum, and it was very uncomfortable.

It was the same in the UK from the late 60's until around the late 80's or so. If a girl wanted to go on the pill then she had to have an internal gynaecological examination and her breasts checked for good measure, that was the guidelines from the official UK health authorities. There was no choice in the matter or they didn't get the pill. My wife had it done as a virgin and she said afterwards that the speculum felt very big and uncomfortable inside her, but luckily she had regularly used tampons so it wasn't too bad.

Dr Philip: This borders on abusive paternalism. There is no medical reason to do a pelvic on a woman to prescribe the Pill, since it's completely a question of hormones. The motivations seem to be :

— To force a pelvic check for STDs because it's assumed that the woman engages, or will engage, in unprotected intercourse and is thus at risk of catching HPV (thus the pap smear using the speculum) and other STDs.

— To blackmail the woman into gynecological exams : « we know that on your own you would not have yourself checked so if you want the Pill you will need to get your breasts palpated ».

To force a speculum exam on a virgin, unless checking for an infection or similar pressing issue, is abusive.

Dr Philip: This borders on abusive paternalism. There is no medical reason to do a pelvic on a woman to prescribe the Pill, since it's completely a question of hormones. The motivations seem to be :

— To force a pelvic check for STDs because it's assumed that the woman engages, or will engage, in unprotected intercourse and is thus at risk of catching HPV (thus the pap smear using the speculum) and other STDs.

— To blackmail the woman into gynecological exams : « we know that on your own you would not have yourself checked so if you want the Pill you will need to get your breasts palpated ».

No @Pecan_nutjob it was not for anything like that. The pill was new then and they were not sure it was safe and what effects it had on ladies' health, they wanted to know if girls were ok at the time they were given it and they kept checking them every year I think. That is what my mum told me. I am too young to have had that, I was just asked some questions like if I smoked (no, yuck) and if I had other medical conditions. I think it is a lot easier now than it must have been in the 1980s.

Yes. Agree with @Amethyst. We’re talking about 35 years ago. It’s a different world now and the side effects and dangers are more fully understood today.

No @Pecan_nutjob it was not for anything like that. The pill was new then and they were not sure it was safe and what effects it had on ladies' health, they wanted to know if girls were ok at the time they were given it and they kept checking them every year I think. That is what my mum told me. I am too young to have had that, I was just asked some questions like if I smoked (no, yuck) and if I had other medical conditions. I think it is a lot easier now than it must have been in the 1980s.

Yes @Amethyst my wife was checked by the doctor at the family planning clinic every year and had an internal examination before the nurse gave her the next 6 months supply of the pill. She was on the pill for 5 years and then after our first was born had a coil fitted but didn't get on with that, and so then had a diaphragm fitted. It was nearly always middle aged male doctors who did the examination or fitting. My wife didn't enjoy or look forward to it, but on the other hand she didn't really mind and just accepted it, that was how it was for every young woman back then. There was nothing abusive about it, she was always treated with respect.

Yes @Amethyst my wife was checked by the doctor at the family planning clinic every year and had an internal examination before the nurse gave her the next 6 months supply of the pill. She was on the pill for 5 years and then after our first was born had a coil fitted but didn't get on with that, and so then had a diaphragm fitted. It was nearly always middle aged male doctors who did the examination or fitting.

Yes @Dr_Philip my mum has told me things like that. She had male doctors during the 1980s examining her for her pill prescriptions. It did not surprise her because she knew about it and expected it. She said I had it a lot easier. lol

Amethyst: The Pill does not date from the 1980s. Contraceptive pills were approved in 1960 in the United States. We're talking 20-25 years of experience there.

And the cases I mention date from the 1990s.

Amethyst: The Pill does not date from the 1980s. Contraceptive pills were approved in 1960 in the United States. We're talking 20-25 years of experience there.

And the cases I mention date from the 1990s.

I know when it was invented but it was a long time before doctors trusted it enough to not think ladies who wanted to go on it should be examined first. My mum went on the pill in the 1980s. I think it was in the 1990s when they stopped doing the exams in England, I went on the pill in 2003.

Amethyst: "it was a long time before doctors trusted it enough to not think ladies who wanted to go on it should be examined first"

Or maybe "it was a long time until physicians realized that adult women are intelligent enough to care for their own health and that blackmailing them into examinations is immiral".

Maybe it was a bit patriarchal @Pecan_nutjob but really it was because they were just not sure about the early pill types and health.

@Amethyst I'm not sure exactly when they stopped doing these examinations but the NHS Cervical Screening Programme was established in 1988 so probably like you say it was in the 1990's sometime.

@Amethyst I'm not sure exactly when they stopped doing these examinations but the NHS Cervical Screening Programme was established in 1988 so probably like you say it was in the 1990's sometime.

Yes @Dr_Philip and I think it would be the end of the 1990s too, I think some doctors kept on doing it for a bit longer after others stopped it as well. My mum said maybe I just missed it by between 2 and 4 years but she is not sure either, she does not remember exactly. I do not think it could just be 2 years though.

@Nagus & @justme - transrectal ultrasound would be a crummy way to evaluate the ovaries.

The biggest problem is getting the probe in the right spot. Air (or gas) is the enemy of ultrasound. If you have any air (gas) between the ultrasound probe and the thing you are trying to look at, you don't see anything but uniform grey. A transrectal ultrasound can work for evaluating the prostate, because you can get the probe right up against the prostate in the rectum. Ovaries are not the same. I've never even looked for ovaries with a rectal ultrasound, but I think it would be a very suboptimal view.

Ultrasound probes are smaller than vagina specula. The widest part is at the end, and it's no wider than a slightly large thumb. The wand is pretty thin.

Ultrasound probes are much easier to insert than vaginal specula. When lubricated, they just slide right in.

@Amethyst

Yes @Dr_Philip and I think it would be the end of the 1990s too, I think some doctors kept on doing it for a bit longer after others stopped it as well. My mum said maybe I just missed it by between 2 and 4 years but she is not sure either, she does not remember exactly. I do not think it could just be 2 years though.

Yes you are probably right thinking the end of the 1990s. The NHS cervical smear programme started in 1988 so give it 10 years to establish and then start stopping the pill checks in around 1998. Sounds reasonable to me...

It didn't happen to me, I just got a thorough external exam including my minora being pulled wide to look at my vagina/hymen. After my gf had fingered me I now get the internal exam with a virgin speculum. I thought I felt my hymen tear when I first got fingered but a few women have told me they could feel it when fingering me.

I'm quite shocked by recollections where virgins were examined using what appears to be adult speculums suited for sexually active women. Surely a competent physician, when doing the digital exam / bimanual exam, should feel that it will have trouble fitting?

Mmh. On second thoughts, I think one does the pap smear BEFORE the bimanual exam, so as not to pollute the findings with lubricant etc. But still, from looking at the hymen, one should see that it will have a hard time fitting?