Before reading this section, please refer to General instructions after surgery in this section of the website.

Your child has just undergone surgery to separate her labial adhesions. Such adhesions typically occur after an episode of inflammation in the vaginal area such as a diaper rash. Lysing labial adhesions involves physically separating the two edges of the labia minora that are stuck together. After this is done, the edges will remain raw and inflamed for a period of several days; therefore, there is a high risk of recurrent adhesions for several days after surgery.

To prevent readhesion, it is important to apply some type of ointment to the inner labia and vaginal area during the healing process. The most important cream to use in the immediate post-operative period to prevent readhesion is an estrogen cream. You may have already been treating your child with estrogen cream (Estrace or Premarin) before surgery. We typically recommend using estrogen cream three times per day for two weeks after surgery or until the first post-operative follow-up visit in the office. Do not apply estrogen cream three times per day for more than two weeks. After the early critical period of healing, we usually recommend a period of less frequent applications of cream until we are sure the adhesion is cured. The precise regimen will be recommended at the first visit, and it will depend on the severity of the adhesion and your child's early progress after surgery.

Most children do not have much pain after this procedure as long as cream is kept on the raw area. We will occasionally prescribe a topical anesthetic jelly to apply if the adhesion is unusually severe and might be painful or cause burning with urination. Most discomfort is completely gone in one to two days.