Woman in her 30s discovers she’s infertile after STONES formed in her vagina
WE’VE heard of kidney and gallbladder stones - but in rare occasions, stones can develop in the vagina.
Doctors have described the discovery of “giant” stones in the vagina of a woman who was struggling to get pregnant.
Shocking photos published in show the palm-sized pebbles that were removed from her body in surgery.
Doctors said vaginal stones could be “silent for many years” as they slowly form, remaining “undetected when there are no symptoms”.
The 30-year-old, who has not been named, was brought to medical attention when she said she’d battled infertility after marriage.
Other reported symptoms made the Indonesian medics concerned.
The woman had a problem with a leaky bladder since the age of five, when she was in a traffic accident that caused her bladder to rupture.
Her periods had been irregular and painful, but she never seeked treatment for it.
A physical examination raised flags that something was obstructing the vagina.
Following scans showed two “solid and slick” stones inside the pelvic area.
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Measuring 3.6cm by 5cm, and 5cm by 5.8cm, they were around the size of two ping-pong balls.
One was attached to the bladder wall, while the other was attached to the rectum wall.
The doctors explained that vaginal stones can develop when urine pools together where it shouldn't, such as in the vagina.
In the case of this woman, this likely occurred because she had an abnormal opening between the vagina and the ducts that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder, called a ureterovaginal fistula.
This was due to the injuries she’d sustained as a child, which had also caused damage in the reproductive organs that she was unaware of, partially blocking the opening to her vagina.
It’s likely this was behind the apparent irregular periods, the report said.
It added: “Vaginal obstruction will also cause sexual quality problems and infertility in an adult woman.”
There have been hardly any cases of vaginal stones reported in medical literature, the team said, and none that had caused infertility.
Surgeons removed the stones and fixed other abnormalities in the patient's vagina, and six months later, she was not suffering any problems.
The report did not comment on whether she has since been able to conceive.
According to, vaginal stones cause symptoms of pain in the vagina, stomach, and during sex or urination.
It can make women need the toilet more frequently and urgently.
For this reason, it may be misdiagnosed as a urinary tract infection - although in the vast majority of cases, this would be the most likely problem.
The website said: “Vaginal stones, medically known as colpolithiasis, are a very rare condition that most gynecologists will never even see throughout their career.
“However, vaginal stones do still occur.
“A primary vaginal stone typically develops after surgery, trauma, neurogenic bladder, vaginal stenosis, or vaginal outlet obstruction.
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“Women with congenital genitourinary malformations or urethrovaginal fistulas are most at risk.
“Secondary vaginal stones typically develop due to the presence of foreign bodies in the vagina, whether an IUD (intrauterine device) or surgical mesh.”