{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,21]],"date-time":"2026-01-21T07:05:55Z","timestamp":1768979155435,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":36,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"1","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,20]],"date-time":"2026-01-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1768867200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Swedish state under the agreement between the Swedish government and the county councils, the ALF-agreement","award":["FoUI-962340"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["FoUI-962340"]}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100006310","name":"Medicinska Forskningsr\u00e5det","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["#2022-01001"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["#2022-01001"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100006310","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS One"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (RVVC) is a common condition characterized by frequent relapses, often without a clearly identifiable cause. Fluconazole (FLZ) is the standard treatment but concerns about emerging resistance and drug interaction highlight the need for alternative therapies. Chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG), known for its antifungal and biofilm-disrupting properties, has been proposed as a potential alternative.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n                    <jats:title>Objective<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      To evaluate the efficacy, tolerability, and microbiome impact of a vaginal CHG formulation compared to oral FLZ in the treatment of RVVC caused by\n                      <jats:italic>Candida albicans<\/jats:italic>\n                      .\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      An open label randomized non-inferiority trial was conducted to compare vaginal CHG and FLZ treatments. Primary outcome was negative cultures for\n                      <jats:italic>C. albicans<\/jats:italic>\n                      . Resistance profiles and changes in the vaginal microbiome composition were also assessed.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      The study was terminated early due to local irritation associated with CHG and the study design was transitioned into a pilot study. CHG treatment showed comparable efficacy to FLZ in clearing\n                      <jats:italic>C. albicans<\/jats:italic>\n                      infections and preventing recurrences, although the sample size was limited. All 11 participants in the FLZ group cleared the infection after one week treatment, compared to 9 out 11 in the CHG group. No harmful changes to the vaginal microbiome were observed in the CGH or FLZ group. FLZ promoted a shift toward\n                      <jats:italic>Lactobacillus crispatus<\/jats:italic>\n                      dominance, unlike CHG. Notably, 16% of\n                      <jats:italic>C. albicans<\/jats:italic>\n                      isolates exhibited reduced susceptibility or resistance to FLZ.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec005\">\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>\n                      Due to the limited number of participants, we cannot conclusively determine whether CHG is non-inferior to FLZ in terms of efficacy for clearing acute C.\n                      <jats:italic>albicans<\/jats:italic>\n                      infections or preventing recurrences. While the current CHG formulation caused local irritation and is not suitable for clinical use, its antifungal and biofilm-inhibiting properties remain promising. Further development of less irritative CHG formulations may offer a valuable alternative for RVVC treatment, particularly in the context of rising FLZ resistance.\n                    <\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0340862","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,20]],"date-time":"2026-01-20T18:24:04Z","timestamp":1768933444000},"page":"e0340862","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Vaginal chlorhexidine gluconate versus fluconazole for recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis: A randomized noninferiority 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