‘World first’ tampon-based at-home vaginal health screening kit now available at Boots

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Gynaecological health startup Daye has announced that its diagnostic tampon, which provides a non-invasive method of screening your vaginal health at home, is now available to buy at Boots in the UK.

Daye redesigned the tampon, which the company says has long been overlooked as merely a menstrual care product, into an easy-to-use device for gynaelogical health screening.

Unlike traditional screening methods like swabs and speculums, Daye’s Diagnostic Tampon collects more vaginal fluid than a standard swab and covers the whole vaginal canal, ensuring improved reliability and patient comfort in detecting a range of infections says the company.

Daye’s Diagnostic Tampon can screen for:

Fertility-inhibiting pathogens Vaginal infections such as thrush and bacterial vaginosis (BV) Sexually transmitted infections (STIs), such as chlamydia and gonorrhoea Perimenopause and menopause-related changes in the microbiome The overall health of the vaginal microbiome

Daye says that to use the kit, patients insert the provided tampon, wear it for 20 minutes (and up to 8 hours), place it in the provided sterile pouch after use, and ship it back to Daye in the same box they received. The company says patients do not need to be menstruating, which means they can use the screen while menopausal, pregnant, or on long-term contraception.

Beyond screening, customers can access personalised health advice, prescription treatments and expert telemedical consultations with vetted physicians. Each report also comes with lifestyle hacks to support the patient’s vaginal health.

The company says that so far, 54% of the people who have used the diagnostic tampon are getting screened for the first time, demonstrating that the service is able to reach underserved patient populations.

“We’re delighted to make convenient, non-invasive gynaelogical health screening available to Boots customers and help diagnose and treat more patients, especially in light of the concerning 24% year-on-year increase in STIs in the UK post-COVID,” said Valentina Milanova, Founder and CEO of Daye.