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Do Vaginal Rejuvenation Surgeries and Products Work?

As you age, your vagina can change. But experts say some of the ‘fixes’ are risky

Ellen Uzelac,

AARP

Published September 03, 2026

The vagina, in case you haven’t noticed, is having a moment among women 50-plus.

“Vaginal rejuvenation,” as it’s been tagged, has bubbled up as a hot topic in friend circles and on social media, with ads for products and procedures promising a pinker vagina, more lubrication and a tighter vaginal opening.

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Some of it is legit; much of it is not. Our medical experts explain.

I’ve done some research into vaginal rejuvenation procedures to tighten the vagina and reduce vaginal dryness. Can you explain the various procedures, surgical and nonsurgical, with a listing of the pros and cons? — Submitted by L.M.

First off, “vaginal rejuvenation” is a marketing term and not a medical one, says Anita Mikkilineni, an ob-gyn at George Washington University Medical Faculty Associates in Washington, D.C.

“‘Rejuvenation’ is misleading,” she says. “It implies the vagina needs to be refreshed. That’s a social construct. It’s being marketed to tell women they need a vagina that adheres to male standards.”

Here’s what you need to know about vaginal rejuvenation, starting with a legitimate surgical option that’s used when certain medical symptoms are present.

About vaginal tightening. Perineorrhaphy is a surgery to tighten the vaginal opening through reconstructing the muscular support of the perineum, explains Padma Kandadai, director of urogynecology at Boston University School of Medicine. The perineum is the tissue between the vagina and anus, and it provides important muscular support for the pelvis.

Sometimes, Kandadai says, a loss of muscular support occurs as a result of childbirth, aging or constant straining from constipation. When that happens, a woman may feel like her vagina is loose or wide and that there’s a lack of friction or sexual stimulation during sexual penetration.

If that sensation of looseness is actually weakness in the pelvic floor muscles around the vagina, perineorrhaphy won’t help, but pelvic physical therapy likely will, says Kandadai (more on that later).

A repair of the perineum — essentially putting those muscles back together with sutures that dissolve — results in the narrowing or tightening of the vaginal opening, Kandadai describes.

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The outpatient surgery takes 30 minutes under general anesthesia. If a patient has medical symptoms like discomfort with sex, lack of sensation or muscle loss, Kandadai says the procedure may be covered by insurance. The repair could help those symptoms, but it is not guaranteed.

“There isn’t really a success rate associated with this,” says Kandadai. “It’s clinical judgment to offer the procedure … but we always counsel patients that it may not help.” If insurance won’t cover it, the out-of-pocket expense can run in the thousands of dollars.

The elective genital cosmetic surgery you’re hearing about. Labiaplasty to reshape the labia, clitoral hood reduction and G-spot amplification are the procedures the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) lists under elective options.

But the AGOC warns that elective surgery to alter sexual appearance or function poses “substantial” risk without much evidence that it works. Among the complications that can stem from those procedures: pain, bleeding, infection, scarring, adhesions, painful intercourse and a subsequent operation to correct something that’s gone wrong.

Mikkilineni’s opinion: “If you don’t have anything that bothers you, you don’t need a surgical procedure,” despite what advertisements promise.

What you might try instead. The simplest thing you can do to tighten your vagina is pelvic floor physical therapy, according to Evelin Dacker, a physician in Salem, Oregon, specializing in sexual health.

A therapist will evaluate the pelvic floor muscles via vaginal and rectal exams and then work with the patient to teach them how to control those muscles through exercise.

Popular nonsurgical procedures. Two common procedures promoted by med spas and some physicians to help with dryness are a CO2 laser called the MonaLisaTouch and radiofrequency treatments. They do not require a prescription, and there is little evidence they’re effective, says Dacker.

The treatments, which aren’t permanent, usually take just a few minutes, according to the Cleveland Clinic. The cost ranges between $500 and $1,200 per session.

How they purportedly work. The MonaLisa Touch uses a laser to heat the vaginal surface, with the aim of creating new collagen and increased lubrication, Dacker describes. The radiofrequency treatment works similarly.

“It’s a cash pay,” says Dacker, meaning it’s elective, so don’t expect insurance to cover it. Dacker adds that “it makes a lot of money for the doctors doing it.”

The two devices are FDA-approved for external treatment of the skin — like wrinkles — and are used by dermatologists, says Kandadai. They are not FDA-approved to treat vaginal dryness, menopausal symptoms or vaginal rejuvenation, although some med spas and gynecologists use them off-label.

Maureen Slattery, an ob-gyn at Rochester Regional Health in New York, knows people who were harmed by the devices; their symptoms included burning, ongoing vaginal pain or increased vaginal dryness.

“I don’t recommend them,” she says.

What you might try instead. To treat the dryness often caused by a lack of estrogen around the vulva, the urinary system and the vagina, Mikkilineni says most women benefit from topical estrogen. It increases blood flow, stimulates lubricating glands and fights off urinary tract infections by maintaining a low pH level in the vagina and supporting healthy bacteria.

“It’s bread-and-butter ob-gyn care that’s covered by insurance,” Mikkilineni notes.

What to know about over-the-counter creams and dyes. Kandadai says that many vaginal wellness products prey on women’s insecurities. “People can make a lot of money off of women by promising outcomes and pushing proprietary products with misinformation,” she says.

Slattery agrees. Products called “intimate colorants,” for example, dye the vulva and vagina a darker pink, while others promise to make the vagina “younger” or “more moist.” When women are younger and have more estrogen, she says, the vagina is reddish or a deeper pink. With the loss of estrogen, it turns pale.

“These [products] are everywhere but are not studied or validated to do what they claim; plus some can cause irritation,” says Slattery. “I would never recommend them.”

What you might try instead. Per the AGOC, ob-gyns should reassure their patients that the size, shape and color of external genitalia vary considerably from woman to woman.

So just try being OK with yourself. As Slattery puts it: “Age brings wisdom and experience. We don’t need to alter that concept when it comes to the vagina, especially when it can do more harm than good.”

Do you have questions about sex or relationships as a 50-plus adult? Send them to sexafter50@aarp.org.

Ellen Uzelac is the former West Coast bureau chief for The Baltimore Sun. She writes frequently on sex, relationships, travel and lifestyle issues.

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