Gardnerella is a STD.
It’s not only transmitted through sex. A girl can also get it when she washes her vulva with soap regularly, when she doesn’t remove a tampon in time or after the use of antibiotics. That’s because the normal flora of the vagina gets altered, causing an overgrowth of certain bacteria.
It’s very contagious. If you have sex once with someone who has gardnerella you have at least a 70% chance of getting it.
The main symptoms are itching of the genitals and a thin greyish discharge. The vagina can smell ‘fishy’, especially after intercourse or when the girl has her period. The fishy smell is a tip off that it is not a yeast infection.
When guys are infected they normally don’t have any symptoms.
Gardnerella seldom clears up without treatment. Sometimes it disappears only to flare up later. So if you think it is gardnerella, go to your GP to have it checked out.