Background: A rare case of acute urinary retention caused by labial fusion in an adolescent is described and the possible causes are discussed.
Case: A 17-year-old girl, not sexually active, presented to our emergency service for acute urinary retention. Genital examination revealed labia minora fusion from the clitoris to the vaginal fourchette; urethra, and clitoris were not visualized. Sexual abuse and trauma were excluded. The labia minora were manually separated in the operating room revealing a normal vagina and urethral meatus. Skin biopsies taken from the fused labia minora revealed Lichen Sclerosus et Atrophicus.
Summary and conclusion: Urinary retention may be seen in the face of complete adhesion of the labia minora, a rare event in postpubertal individuals. In such cases, a suspicion of underlying pathology such as asymptomatic Lichen Sclerosus should be raised and be confirmed by a biopsy.
Keywords: Adolescent; Labial fusion; Lichen sclerosus et atrophicus; Urinary retention.
Copyright © 2013 North American Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Gynecology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.