Currently, there is no FDA approved treatment for bacterial vaginosis (BV), although various oral dosages of metronidazole are used to treat this condition. A vaginal therapeutic sponge (VLI Corporation) that releases metronidazole over a 24 h use period has been developed for the treatment of BV. Each sponge contains 250 mg of metronidazole. The safety and effectiveness of using one or three metronidazole-containing vaginal sponges for the treatment of BV was evaluated in 40 patients. Use of a single sponge resulted in a cure rate of 38.9%. With three sponges the cure rate was 94.4%. Cure was defined as the absence of signs and symptoms (vaginal discharge, elevated pH, KOH prep odor, and 'clue' cells) at the one and four week follow-up visits. The sexual partners of most women were also treated with metronidazole (2 g po in one dose). None of the women were discontinued from treatment because of any adverse effects. Side-effects were minimal and required no treatment. The cure rate with the three vaginal sponge dosage appears to be similar to that associated with oral dosages of metronidazole.