This week on the Ricki Lake Show, I learned about women having their hymen reconstructed. I never knew such a thing existed. Check out this clip from the show.
Melody Meozzi, an Iranian-American Muslim writer and attorney, is a staunch opponent of hymen reconstruction. She believes that it further contributes to violence against women. She goes head to head with with Dr. Robert Moore, an internationally recognized Laparoscopic and Vaginal Reconstructive Surgeon who has operated on patients from all over the US and the world.
Hymen Repair Surgery, termed as Hymenoplasty is a simple surgery to restore virginity of women owing to the religious, cultural and ethnic reasons. The surgery repairs the hymen after it has been ruptured during sexual assault, agreed intercourse, sports, falls or insertion of tampons.
The Hymen Restoration Surgery takes up to 30 minutes to an hour. The surgery is performed under local anaesthesia with sedation or general anesthesia. It involves stitching of the edges of the remaining hymen together. Soon after this the hymen heals and the ruptured hymen grows back to a hymen similar to one in virgin girls. With hymen restoration, vaginal walls also tighten up.
Such procedures are not generally regarded as part of mainstream gynecology, but are available from some plastic surgery centers, particularly in the USA, Japan and Western Europe, generally as day surgery. The normal aim is to cause bleeding during post-nuptialintercourse, which in some cultures is considered proof of virginity.
I came across an article on the BBC News website about women in Asia and the Arab world who risk being ostracized or death because they had sex outside of marriage. Many of them are undergoing surgery to reconnect their hymen so that there is blood on the sheets on their wedding night. Others have committed suicide because of the unbearable pressure and the fear of being found out. Read their stories.
Hymen reconstruction surgery is performed in China as sexually active Chinese women are pressured by their new husbands. This procedure is also done in Canada. There were lots of websites promoting hymen repair, reconstruction. There was even a website called Hymen shop where they sell artificial hymen.
There is so much information out there about hymen reconstruction. If you or someone you know is considering this procedure, educate yourself first. Seek counselling. Don’t let anyone pressure you into having the surgery. This decision is yours alone.
Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hymenorrhaphy; http://www.weirdasianews.com/2010/09/14/hymen-reconstruction-surgery-price-virginity/; http://www.indicure.com/articles/hymenoplasty-procedure-outcomes-cost-hymen-restoration-surgery-in-top-hospitals-clinics-in-india.html; http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/hymen-reconstruction-doesnt-work;
