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Sexual quality of life in women who have undergone female genital mutilation: a case–control study
Author(s) -
Andersson SHA,
Rymer J,
Joyce DW,
Momoh C,
Gayle CM
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
bjog: an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.157
H-Index - 164
eISSN - 1471-0528
pISSN - 1470-0328
DOI - 10.1111/1471-0528.12004
Subject(s) - medicine , female circumcision , quality of life (healthcare) , sexual life , sex organ , gynecology , population , demography , biology , nursing , genetics , sociology , environmental health
Please cite this paper as: Andersson S, Rymer J, Joyce D, Momoh C, Gayle C. Sexual quality of life in women who have undergone female genital mutilation: a case–control study. BJOG 2012;119:1606–1611. Objective To investigate the sexual quality of life of women who have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM) and compare them with a similar group who has not undergone FGM. Design Case–control study. Setting A large central London teaching hospital. Population A total of 73 women who had undergone FGM and 37 control women, who had not undergone FGM but were from a similar cultural background where FGM is practiced. Methods The women completed a questionnaire containing the Sexual Quality of Life‐Female (SQOL‐F) questionnaire. Main outcome measures SQOL‐F score. Results Women who have undergone FGM of any type have a significantly lower ( P < 0.001) overall SQOL‐F score than control women (mean = 62.44, SD = 27.93 versus mean = 88.84, SD = 13.73). Women who were sexually active and had undergone FGM type III differed the most from sexually active controls ( P < 0.05) in their SQOL‐F score. Women who were sexually inactive but who had undergone FGM reported significantly lower overall SQOL‐F scores ( P = 0.015) than sexually inactive controls, but were not differentiated by type of FGM. Conclusion FGM significantly reduces women’s sexual quality of life, based on the results of the SQOL‐F questionnaire.