Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsCausesSymptomsManaging DiscomfortWhen to See a ProviderDiagnosisTreatmentOutlook
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Causes
Symptoms
Managing Discomfort
When to See a Provider
Diagnosis
Treatment
Outlook
Having large labia may be due to a condition called labial hypertrophy, but it can also be normal. Labia come in different sizes and may not be symmetrical. In some cases, large labia may cause physical discomfort or make you feel self-conscious, but there are ways to help manage those issues.
If you notice your labia have become bigger, consider making an appointment with your healthcare provider. Keep in mind that labial hypertrophy doesn’t always need treatment. However, if symptoms cause recurrent infections or significantly impact your life,labiaplastymay be helpful.
What Are the Labia?The labia are the lips of the vulva (external female genitalia). The outer lips are called labia majora and the inner lips are called the labia minora. The function of the labia is to protect theclitorisandvaginafrom trauma.
What Are the Labia?
The labia are the lips of the vulva (external female genitalia). The outer lips are called labia majora and the inner lips are called the labia minora. The function of the labia is to protect theclitorisandvaginafrom trauma.
Verywell / Nez Riaz
Vulva Anatomy: External Female Genitalia
Most people with labial hypertrophy don’t experience any symptoms or discomfort related to it. Others may deal with some symptoms.
Labial hypertrophy most often affects only the labia minora but can affect the labia majora, or both.It can affect one or both sides. You may be born with bigger labia, or it can develop over time.
Symptoms may include:
What Is the Average Labia Size?Labia size varies greatly. One study of 200 assigned females not seeking labia-related plastic surgery found that the average size of labia was 19 mm wide and 35.5 mm long.
What Is the Average Labia Size?
Labia size varies greatly. One study of 200 assigned females not seeking labia-related plastic surgery found that the average size of labia was 19 mm wide and 35.5 mm long.
Recovery from Labiaplasty
Managing Large Labia Discomfort
If you’re feeling discomfort because of a long labia, there are things you can do to manage it:
When to See a Healthcare Provider
If you don’t have any symptoms, you don’t need to worry about getting treatment for labial hypertrophy. However, you should talk to your healthcare provider if:
It’s typical for the labia minora to swell during sexual arousal, but if your labia swell and don’t return to their normal size, speak to your healthcare provider.
Healthcare providers don’t have specific tests or imaging they use to diagnose labial hypertrophy as there aren’t widely accepted guidelines for this condition. A healthcare provider typically diagnoses labial hypertrophy based on apelvic examinationand any vaginal or labial symptoms you may have.
If your healthcare provider believes your labia are within normal parameters or that your anxiety over hypertrophy is excessive, they may do a screening forbody dysmorphic disorder.This is a mental health condition that involves an overwhelming preoccupation with your body’s appearance and obsessing over perceived flaws.
Body Dysmorphia: Symptoms, Examples, and How to Help
Your healthcare provider may also check forBartholin gland cyststo see if that could be causing your symptoms. The Bartholin glands are located next to the labia minora near the opening of the vagina. These glands provide lubrication and can, in some cases, get blocked and develop a cyst or an abscess (if there’s an infection).
A cyst tends to be one-sided and causes a pea-shaped lump you can feel or see (if it’s larger).
What Is a Cyst?
Most people who go to their healthcare provider don’t have labial hypertrophy but may feel embarrassed about their labia’s appearance. In those cases, treatment may include education about the wide variation in what’s considered “normal” and counseling for body acceptance.
In most cases of true labial hypertrophy, the condition doesn’t need to be treated. However, if you have bothersome symptoms, there’s a treatment option calledlabiaplastywhich can:
Labiaplasty Techniques
Surgical techniques include:
Labiaplasty typically takes less than an hour and may be performed with either local orgeneral anesthesia.Recovery is generally expected to take about six weeks.
Surgery is an option for people with severe cases or cases that cause emotional discomfort.
Summary
16 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Committee on Adolescent Health Care.Committee opinion no. 686: Breast and labial surgery in adolescents.Obstet Gynecol. 2017;129(1):e17-e19. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001862Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor University.Labial hypertrophy.Nappi RE, Martini E, Cucinella L, et al.Addressing vulvovaginal atrophy (Vva)/genitourinary syndrome of menopause (Gsm) for healthy aging in women.Front Endocrinol. 2019;10:561. doi:10.3389/fendo.2019.00561Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine.The cyclist’s vulva.Sami K, Elshahat A, Moussa M, et al.Image analyzer study of the skin in patients with morbid obesity and massive weight loss. Eplasty. 2015 Jan 23;15:e4. PMID: 25671051Agrawal K, Patel PK, Sahu SA.Premenarchal labia minora hypertrophy.Indian J Plast Surg. 2016;49(2):245-248. doi:10.4103/0970-0358.191323Nationwide Children’s Hospital.What is labial hypertrophy?Widschwendter A, Riedl D, Freidhager K, et al.Perception of labial size and objective measurements-is there a correlation? A cross-sectional study in a cohort not seeking labiaplasty.J Sex Med.2020;17(3):461-469. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.11.272Gowda AU, Chopra N, Khalifeh M.Indications, techniques and complications of labiaplasty.Eplasty. 2015;15:ic46.Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Body dysmorphic disorder.National Health Service UK.Bartholin’s cyst.Lee M, Dalpiaz A, Schwamb R, Miao Y, Waltzer W, Khan A.Clinical pathology of Bartholin’s glands: A review of the literature.Curr Urol. 2015;8(1):22-5. doi:10.1159/000365683Dayan E, Ramirez H, Theodorou S.Radiofrequency treatment of labia minora and majora: A minimally invasive approach to vulva restoration.Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2020 Apr 22;8(4):e2418. doi: 10.1097/GOX.0000000000002418. PMID: 32440388; PMCID: PMC7209841.American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What’s the difference a trim labiaplasty and a wedge labiaplasty?American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty and what does it involve?American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty?
16 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Committee on Adolescent Health Care.Committee opinion no. 686: Breast and labial surgery in adolescents.Obstet Gynecol. 2017;129(1):e17-e19. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001862Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor University.Labial hypertrophy.Nappi RE, Martini E, Cucinella L, et al.Addressing vulvovaginal atrophy (Vva)/genitourinary syndrome of menopause (Gsm) for healthy aging in women.Front Endocrinol. 2019;10:561. doi:10.3389/fendo.2019.00561Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine.The cyclist’s vulva.Sami K, Elshahat A, Moussa M, et al.Image analyzer study of the skin in patients with morbid obesity and massive weight loss. Eplasty. 2015 Jan 23;15:e4. PMID: 25671051Agrawal K, Patel PK, Sahu SA.Premenarchal labia minora hypertrophy.Indian J Plast Surg. 2016;49(2):245-248. doi:10.4103/0970-0358.191323Nationwide Children’s Hospital.What is labial hypertrophy?Widschwendter A, Riedl D, Freidhager K, et al.Perception of labial size and objective measurements-is there a correlation? A cross-sectional study in a cohort not seeking labiaplasty.J Sex Med.2020;17(3):461-469. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.11.272Gowda AU, Chopra N, Khalifeh M.Indications, techniques and complications of labiaplasty.Eplasty. 2015;15:ic46.Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Body dysmorphic disorder.National Health Service UK.Bartholin’s cyst.Lee M, Dalpiaz A, Schwamb R, Miao Y, Waltzer W, Khan A.Clinical pathology of Bartholin’s glands: A review of the literature.Curr Urol. 2015;8(1):22-5. doi:10.1159/000365683Dayan E, Ramirez H, Theodorou S.Radiofrequency treatment of labia minora and majora: A minimally invasive approach to vulva restoration.Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2020 Apr 22;8(4):e2418. doi: 10.1097/GOX.0000000000002418. PMID: 32440388; PMCID: PMC7209841.American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What’s the difference a trim labiaplasty and a wedge labiaplasty?American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty and what does it involve?American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty?
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Committee on Adolescent Health Care.Committee opinion no. 686: Breast and labial surgery in adolescents.Obstet Gynecol. 2017;129(1):e17-e19. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001862Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor University.Labial hypertrophy.Nappi RE, Martini E, Cucinella L, et al.Addressing vulvovaginal atrophy (Vva)/genitourinary syndrome of menopause (Gsm) for healthy aging in women.Front Endocrinol. 2019;10:561. doi:10.3389/fendo.2019.00561Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine.The cyclist’s vulva.Sami K, Elshahat A, Moussa M, et al.Image analyzer study of the skin in patients with morbid obesity and massive weight loss. Eplasty. 2015 Jan 23;15:e4. PMID: 25671051Agrawal K, Patel PK, Sahu SA.Premenarchal labia minora hypertrophy.Indian J Plast Surg. 2016;49(2):245-248. doi:10.4103/0970-0358.191323Nationwide Children’s Hospital.What is labial hypertrophy?Widschwendter A, Riedl D, Freidhager K, et al.Perception of labial size and objective measurements-is there a correlation? A cross-sectional study in a cohort not seeking labiaplasty.J Sex Med.2020;17(3):461-469. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.11.272Gowda AU, Chopra N, Khalifeh M.Indications, techniques and complications of labiaplasty.Eplasty. 2015;15:ic46.Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Body dysmorphic disorder.National Health Service UK.Bartholin’s cyst.Lee M, Dalpiaz A, Schwamb R, Miao Y, Waltzer W, Khan A.Clinical pathology of Bartholin’s glands: A review of the literature.Curr Urol. 2015;8(1):22-5. doi:10.1159/000365683Dayan E, Ramirez H, Theodorou S.Radiofrequency treatment of labia minora and majora: A minimally invasive approach to vulva restoration.Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2020 Apr 22;8(4):e2418. doi: 10.1097/GOX.0000000000002418. PMID: 32440388; PMCID: PMC7209841.American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What’s the difference a trim labiaplasty and a wedge labiaplasty?American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty and what does it involve?American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty?
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists’ Committee on Adolescent Health Care.Committee opinion no. 686: Breast and labial surgery in adolescents.Obstet Gynecol. 2017;129(1):e17-e19. doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000001862
Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor University.Labial hypertrophy.
Nappi RE, Martini E, Cucinella L, et al.Addressing vulvovaginal atrophy (Vva)/genitourinary syndrome of menopause (Gsm) for healthy aging in women.Front Endocrinol. 2019;10:561. doi:10.3389/fendo.2019.00561
Texas Children’s Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine.The cyclist’s vulva.
Sami K, Elshahat A, Moussa M, et al.Image analyzer study of the skin in patients with morbid obesity and massive weight loss. Eplasty. 2015 Jan 23;15:e4. PMID: 25671051
Agrawal K, Patel PK, Sahu SA.Premenarchal labia minora hypertrophy.Indian J Plast Surg. 2016;49(2):245-248. doi:10.4103/0970-0358.191323
Nationwide Children’s Hospital.What is labial hypertrophy?
Widschwendter A, Riedl D, Freidhager K, et al.Perception of labial size and objective measurements-is there a correlation? A cross-sectional study in a cohort not seeking labiaplasty.J Sex Med.2020;17(3):461-469. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2019.11.272
Gowda AU, Chopra N, Khalifeh M.Indications, techniques and complications of labiaplasty.Eplasty. 2015;15:ic46.
Anxiety & Depression Association of America.Body dysmorphic disorder.
National Health Service UK.Bartholin’s cyst.
Lee M, Dalpiaz A, Schwamb R, Miao Y, Waltzer W, Khan A.Clinical pathology of Bartholin’s glands: A review of the literature.Curr Urol. 2015;8(1):22-5. doi:10.1159/000365683
Dayan E, Ramirez H, Theodorou S.Radiofrequency treatment of labia minora and majora: A minimally invasive approach to vulva restoration.Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2020 Apr 22;8(4):e2418. doi: 10.1097/GOX.0000000000002418. PMID: 32440388; PMCID: PMC7209841.
American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What’s the difference a trim labiaplasty and a wedge labiaplasty?
American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty and what does it involve?
American Society of Plastic Surgeons.What is a labiaplasty?
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