by Erich Rosenberger M.D.

Created on: February 26, 2009

The human body is filled with a wide variety of obscure features and organs that most people are only vaguely aware of - or only tend to notice if something goes wrong. The Bartholin's gland is one of those often-overlooked structures. But what exactly is the Bartholin's gland and where can you find it?

First of all, if you're a man and you're going to search for your Bartholin's gland, you're going to be looking for a long time. Bartholin's glands are only found in women. They are located on the labia, just inside the opening to the vagina.

As is the case with many scientific and medical topics, the Bartholin's gland is named after the scientist who discovered it and first described it. In this case, the Bartholin's gland was first described in the late 1600's by Caspar Bartholin the Younger - not to be confused with his grandfather, Caspar Bartholin the Elder. No really, you can't make up something like that. Although it does make one wonder what happened to the generation in the middle, was he Caspar Batholing In The Middle? I asked my anatomy professor in medical school if he knew either one, as he was about their age. I never got a definitive answer. But I digress...

When humans are first growing in the womb of their mother, they start with many of the same structures. Once the hormones that control gender begin to circulate, the sex organs will make the fetus in to a female, or a male, as appropriate. Because of this, many organs in both boys and girls are what's called "homologues". This means that they share a common organ ancestry. The homolgous organ in a boy to the Bartholin's gland is known as the Cowpers gland. Yes, there was a Dr. Cowper. No word on him being "the Younger", or the "Elder" however.

The Bartholin's glands to have a function. They are responsible for secreting a small amount of fluid that serves to lubricate the vaginal area of a woman. Although a majority of vaginal lubrication originates deeper in the vagina, the secretions from the Bartholin's gland are not unimportant.

As is the case with just about any organ in the body, it is possible for the Bartholin's gland to become infected. If the opening to the gland becomes blocked for whatever reason, the fluid in the gland can build-up and develop in to a cyst. An infected cyst is known as a Bartholin's abscess. Bartholin's gland cysts and abscess are more common in younger women, typically in their 20's.

Treatment for a Bartholin's gland cyst depends on the size and severity. Small cysts can be watched and will usually resolve on their own. Larger cysts can be drained. Infected abscesses can be treated with antibiotics and drained.

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