Hymenoplasty - Plastic Surgery to Save Lives

Hymenoplasty - Plastic Surgery to Save Lives

 

Patients will often state that their plastic surgery was not to please others in society or within their circle of friends and relatives, but for personal reasons; however, these personal reasons almost invariably stem from cultural values. In the West, the values that drive women and men to plastic surgery include a drive to maintain the appearance of youth and beauty along with the desire to appear fit and healthy. Some younger, quite attractive people seek out plastic surgery as a way to look 'normal'. But, in some parts of the world, more exotic plastic surgeries are done to help save women's lives. Hymenoplasty is one of these cosmetic procedures.

 

 

In many Arab countries, if a bride is non-virginal on her wedding night (or assumed to be, because of an elastic hymen), this represents a black mark on her families honor. In the most oppressive regions of the Middle East, the woman’s father or brother may kill the woman in order to restore honor to the family. Because of the local and regional societal morays and customs, authorities rarely investigate these occurrences. A fact that makes this account terribly sad is that as many as 80 % of true virgins, women who have never had vaginal intercourse, may not experience the bleeding and pain that has come to be expected of a woman’s first time.

 

One solution that women are turning to is hymenoplasty. Hymenoplasty is the surgical restoration of the hymen. The goal of hymenoplasty is to approximate the function of the real hymen such that it bleeds and causes pain during a woman’s first vaginal intercourse. There are several types of hymenoplasty that are performed and the patient needs and goals dictate which procedure is used.

 

Surgical repair of the hymen: This is the simplest type of hymenorraphy. Patients will be sedated and a local anesthesia will be used to numb the area. The hymen is simply stitched together with micro-sutures - surgeons attempt to restore its appearance as a barrier of skin with a circular opening in the center. This hymen will have a natural blood flow, and if the opening is sufficiently small, will certainly bleed upon penetration. In a surgical repair of the hymen, the tissue is simply pulled together and will eventually make its way back to its original state. To cause bleeding and thus result in the desired response, surgical repair of the hymen must be done between three and seven days before the wedding.

 

If the main aim is simply to cause bleeding during first vaginal penetration, doctors may cerclage the hymenal remnants, if the hymen itself is insufficient for repair. A string is threaded through the remnants, which can then be tied onto the underwear on the wedding night. Pulling the string will cause pain and bleeding approximating an initial breaking of the hymen. Alternatively, doctors may simply insert a gelatin capsule filled with a substance resembling blood, which will burst upon penetration.

 

Hymen replacements can also be done using a flap of skin from the vaginal wall. A thin flap will be cut from the rear wall, and attached to the front wall via dissolvable sutures. The procedure needs to be done at least three weeks before any penetration can occur.

 

Alloplants for hymen replacement surgery are growing in popularity. Alloplant biomaterials have been known to stimulate tissue regeneration, and can safely be used in surgery for the purposes of hymenoplasty. The use of hymen alloplants is currently the most effective way to achieve the desired result though it is also the most expensive hymenoplasty.

 

Since it is not possible to change a culture overnight, some surgeries are done to save the lives of women today. Until more freedoms can be extended to women throughout the world, hymenoplasty is a plastic surgery that can save a life.