Pap smear is done for HPV and cervical cancer and is usually done only on females that started to be sexually active. For vaginal infection it's not necessary to have pap smear but a swab sample of the discharge might be taken for tests.

Infections can be cause by fungus, bacterias and parasites. So it's always better to be checked because different infections are treated with different medications.

Untreated infection may travel up and lead to pelvic inflammatory disease that would lead to infertility.

Cancers are often caused by HPV which is a viral infection; a different kind of infection with different symptoms like genital warts and etc. That is why we have pap smears... because cervix cancer is not something you can see yourself.

I'm a med student so I'm just sharing what I learnt hope it helps.

This post has been edited by OctoberFly: Jan 30 2013, 11:24 PM

There are many reasons and one of it is STD. Gonorrhea is one of the main cause which is bacterial, there's another STD called trichomonas which is a parasite.

The most common one is candidiasis. It's a fungal infection. We all have the same fungus in our privates AND in our mouth but it becomes an infection when they have the opportunity to grow; like immunocompromised patients & etc. They are good at acidic pH which is the pH of our privates (yay)

If you've been washing yourself with a lot of soaps / antibacterial bathing soaps, it might destroy the normal flora of bacterias on your privates and Mister Candida would take over and give you an infection!

For unhygienic causes... E. Coli is found in our butthole, but if you don't clean yourself properly, they can invade your vag and give you infection. There are a lot more causes and agents responsible.

PID symtoms and vaginitis symtoms however, are similar so if you're afraid of infertility issues, its wise to get checked....