The impact of female genital cutting on health of newly married women

Objective: To detect the rate of female genital cutting among a sample of newly married women in Benha city, and make a comparison between circumcised and non-circumcised women regarding long-term health problems. Methods: Randomly selected (264) newly married women were the subjects of this work. Results: Circumcised group constitutes 75.8% of the sample. All non-circumcised women were living in an urban area. Dysmenorrhea was more common among circumcised rather than non-circumcised, with statistically significant difference (P < 0.01). Marital problems (dyspareunia, loss of libido, failure of orgasm and husband's unsatisfaction) had statistically different levels of significance among circumcised women. Obstetric problems such as tears, episiotomy and consequently distressed babies were more events among circumcised mothers with statistical significance. Circumcised females had significant mental problems such as somatization, anxiety and phobia (P < 0.001). Conclusion: Female genital cutting remains a widely practiced custom in our society. Grave complications of circumcision may last throughout women's life particularly the time of consummation of marriage and the time of childbirth. © 2007 International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics.