Date Posted: June 10, 2026

Author/s: Shiara Marriz T. Marquez, MD and Lylah D. Reyes, MD, FPOGS

Vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC) is one of the frequent infections of the female genital tract and is the second most common cause of vaginal infections after bacterial vaginosis. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), azoles are the first-line of treatment for VVC. Among the azoles available in the Philippines, only miconazole and clotrimazole are recommended for both pregnant and non- pregnant women. This study reviewed a total of 316 records of patients, regardless of pregnancy status who were given either single dose 1200 mg miconazole or a 6-day 100 mg clotrimazole vaginal suppository as treatment for vulvovaginal candidiasis. Upon follow- up, 11 out of 316 (3.46%) were still symptomatic which was noted in 2 (18.1%) from the miconazole group and 9 (81.8%) from the clotrimazole group. The difference for these outcomes between the treatment groups is statistically significant. The treatment failure rate for miconazole is 1.2% (2/161) and 5.8% (9/155) for clotrimazole. None of the charts of these women had recorded adverse reaction to the given treatment. In conclusion, the single-dose miconazole regimen has a significantly higher clinical cure rate than the 6-day clotrimazole. It has the potential to improve patient compliance and improve treatment outcome at a lower cost.

Keywords:
vulvovaginal candidiasis, miconazole, clotrimazole, azole antifungals, vaginitis