Education and debate
Commentary: Education about the hymen is needed
Cite this as:
BMJ
1998;316:461
- Sara Paterson-Brown, consultant obstetrician and gynaecologista (s.paterson-brown@rpms.ac.uk)
- a Queen Charlotte and Chelsea Hospital, London W6 0XG
Introduction
The celebration of a bloody sheet, vividly portrayed in popular cinema, is based on strong religious and cultural beliefs. The Koran states that a bride has to be a virgin, and according to custom a woman found on her wedding night to have been “touched” brings shame to her family. Consequences include divorce through to death. 1
Young women, understandably, go to great lengths to get their hymens refashioned (hymenorraphy) before their wedding.1 Hymenorraphy is illegal in most Arab countries, but it is performed unofficially; specialists undertake five or six procedures …
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