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Why Does Collagen Matter for Vaginal Health?


It’s a significant component of nails and hair. It holds vital organs together and gives skin its structure. It’s the most abundant protein in animal life, including humans—and it’s unfortunately not something that remains at optimal levels as adulthood progresses. A gradual reduction in collagen in the body can impact everything from smooth skin to vaginal health, as noted by Dr. Duncan Turner, a Santa Barbara County-based gynecologist also serving San Luis Obispo County to the north and Ventura County to the south.

Younger people have an abundance of collagen, which creates support for both external and internal anatomical structures, as well as provides a framework to hold hyaluronic acid, which is key for retaining moisture. The strong, flexible structures built by collagen allow skin to be resilient, ensuring it can flex as necessary when muscles contract and joints bend—and then can return to its previous state. These structures also form barriers and bases, keeping organs and systems in place to maintain their proper function.

As people age, collagen breaks down—a natural phenomenon that can also be hastened by environmental factors, such as UV radiation and smoking. The body replaces lost collagen, but this process, too, begins to slow as time goes by. Eventually, collagen is lost faster than it is replaced, and signs of the imbalance begin to appear. Collagen loss manifests in a variety of ways, from the visible (as with increasingly obvious facial lines) to the unseen (as with vaginal discomfort and atrophy).

Stimulating new collagen production on the face can smooth out lines, which is a result many women openly desire and feel comfortable discussing with a medical professional—and even friends. Vaginal discomfort and atrophy, however, are not talked of as openly, which may lead women suffering from painful intercourse, mild incontinence, and related problems to bear their burden in silence.

While there are many conditions that can lead to vaginal dryness, neocollagenesis—the creation of new collagen—is a single remedy for a wide variety of symptoms. Collagen production can be stimulated by the introduction of specific energy, as with the radiofrequency-based ThermiVa^®. This new collagen is ideal for thickening tissues that have thinned and dried out. Because of this, neocollagenesis is used to:

• tighten vaginal walls that have loosened, leading to a loss of sensation during intercourse

• tighten sagging labia that can be visible and even chafe when certain clothes, such as yoga pants, are worn

• combat vaginal dryness by improving lubrication to increase comfort and sensation during intercourse

• work with other elements to create optimal vaginal conditions and reduce urinary tract infections

• strengthen support for the bladder

That last point is often one of particular interest to women, especially those who have had multiple children and find that they involuntarily release a small amount of urine when they sneeze, laugh, or jump.

As tissues atrophy due to repeated trauma from childbirth and the expected loss of collagen, the bladder loses its supportive structure that otherwise keeps it firmly in place and able to function as it should. Without its necessary underlying structure, the bladder is prone to leakage. New collagen in this area restores that framework.

Kick-starting collagen production with ThermiVa^® or a similar treatment will provide immediate results that continue to improve over time as tissues progressively thicken. This new collagen will ultimately break down over time, as all collagen does. The treatment can be repeated as desired by a patient to maintain long-term results.

There are surgical vaginal rejuvenation procedures that can tighten walls and correct incontinence, offering many of the same benefits as a noninvasive treatment—though they don’t focus on collagen regeneration.

Any woman interested in restoring the proper function, form, and feel of her vaginal area that has suffered from collagen loss is encouraged to be honest with her gynecologist and seek a treatment that will safely and effectively deliver the results she wants.

To learn more about collagen, vaginal health and ThermiVa^®, contact Santa Barbara’s Dr. Duncan Turner of Turner Medical Arts at (805) 962-1957 or reach out online.