Small hard ball on vaginal area


Q: So last week, I found a small hard ball type thing on my vaginal area. I don't think it's a wart. You know with black heads, you feel a ball under the skin? It's kinda like that, but a little bigger. It causes no pain or discomfort in any way, it's just there and I don't know what it is... Would you have any idea?

Symptoms:  None

A:   A cyst is a sac filled with liquid or semisolid material that forms under the skin or somewhere inside the body. The Bartholin glands are two small organs under the skin in a woman's genital area. They are on either side of the folds of skin (labia) that surround the vagina and urethra. Most of the time, you can't feel or see these glands.The Bartholin glands make a small amount of fluid that moistens the outer genital area, or vulva. This fluid comes out of two tiny tubes next to the opening of the vagina. These tubes are called Bartholin ducts.
If a Bartholin duct gets blocked, fluid builds up in the gland. The blocked gland is called a Bartholin gland cyst (Sometimes it's called a Bartholin duct cyst.) These cysts can range in size from a pea to a large marble. They usually grow slowly. If the Bartholin gland or duct gets infected, it's called a Bartholin gland abscess.


Other than this a vulval swelling may also be caused by inflammation of any cause, infections or tumors. Differentiating one from the other involves a clinical examination and certain diagnostic tests. Please get in touch with your gynecologist.

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