Open Access

ARTICLE

Female circumcision: history, medical and psychological complications, and initiatives to eradicate this practice

Gaurang Shah¹, Luay Susan¹, Jean Furcroy²

1 Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, Ohio, USA
2 Uniformed Services, University of Health Science, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
Address correspondence to Dr. Gaurang Shah, Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute, Cleveland Clinic, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Mail Code WL 10, Cleveland, OH 44195 USA

Canadian Journal of Urology 2009, 16(2), 4576-4579.

Abstract

Female circumcision — a procedure where the parts of the female genitals are removed, which is also known as female genital cutting (FGC) or female genital mutilation (FGM) — continues to be practiced in more than 28 African countries. It is estimated that 80-100 million women have been circumcised. We performed a review of the literature to examine the history of female circumcision, its medical and psychological consequences, and government and non-government educational initiatives that are currently being taken to eradicate this practice.

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Keywords

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