The World Health Organization released its new guidelines on Monday, aiming to help health workers provide better care for the more than 200 million girls and women worldwide living with mutilated genitals.
Female genital mutilation, or FGM, describes all procedures that involve the partial or total removal of external genitalia or other injuries to the female genital organs for nonmedical purposes.
It is mostly prevalent in 30 countries across Africa, the Middle East and Asia and is usually carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15, according to the WHO.
"Health workers have a crucial role in helping address this global health issue. They must know how to recognize and tackle the health complications of FGM," said Flavia Bustreo, WHO assistant director-general.
"Access to the right information and good training can help prevent new cases and ensure that the millions of women who have undergone FGM get the help they need."
According to the guidelines, FGM has no health benefits, can cause grave harm and violates the rights of girls and women.
Procedures can cause severe bleeding, problems urinating, and later cysts, infections and death. FGM can also result in complications in childbirth and increased risk of death among newborns.
The WHO's guidelines underline the fact that action must be taken across various sectors to stop the practice and help those who are living with its consequences.
They also warn against the so called "medicalization" of FGM, which occurs when parents ask health providers to conduct the operation because they think it will be less harmful, for example.
"It is critical that health workers do not unwittingly perpetuate this harmful practice," said Lale Say, a coordinator with the Department of Reproductive Health and Research at the WHO.
Procedures:
Female genital mutilation is classified into 4 major types.
Type 1: Often referred to as clitoridectomy, this is the partial or total removal of the clitoris — a small, sensitive and erectile part of the female genitals. Or, in rare cases, just the prepuce — the fold of skin surrounding the clitoris.
Type 2: Often referred to as excision, this is the partial or total removal of the clitoris and the labia minora — the inner folds of the vulva — with or without excision of the labia majora — the outer folds of skin of the vulva.
Type 3: Often referred to as infibulation, this is the narrowing of the vaginal opening through the creation of a covering seal. The seal is formed by cutting and repositioning the labia minora, or labia majora, sometimes through stitching, with or without removal of the clitoris.
Type 4: This includes all other harmful procedures to the female genitalia for nonmedical purposes, such as pricking, piercing, incising, scraping and cauterizing the genital area.
Source: the World Health Organization
