Peer-reviewed article
Health Consequences of the Female Genital Mutilation: A Systematic Review.
Khadijeh Sarayloo, Robab Latifnejad Roudsari, Amy Elhadi ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This systematic review examined the health consequences of female genital mutilation (FGM) by analysing 11 review studies covering 288 relevant studies published between 1990 and 2018. The research found that FGM has multiple harmful effects on girls' and women's health, including physical complications, obstetric problems, sexual dysfunction, and psychological harm. Women who have experienced FGM showed higher rates of mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, phobia, and low self-esteem compared to other women. The review aims to provide evidence to improve services and change practices affecting women living with FGM.
Key points
- FGM has various physical, obstetric, sexual, and psychological consequences
- Women with FGM experience higher rates of mental disturbances including psychiatric diagnoses, anxiety, somatization, phobia, and low self-esteem
- The review synthesized evidence from 288 studies across multiple international databases
- Findings can inform quality improvement in services for women with FGM
Limitations
This is a systematic review of reviews rather than primary data collection, so it cannot establish causal mechanisms or provide information about prevalence rates or severity of outcomes in specific populations. The document does not specify which countries or regions the included studies focused on beyond the database search strategy.
Abstract
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a general health concern. The World Health Organization has recognized it as a condition that endangers women's health. This review study aimed to identify the types of health outcomes of FGM. Therefore, a systematic review was conducted to create a critical view of the current evidence on the effect of Female genital on girls and women's health. In this study, we focused on the health risks of female Female genital. Academic databases such as PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, Google Scholar, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, SID, IranMedex, Irandoc, and Magiran were searched with regard to the health consequences of FGM from January 1990 until 2018. Eleven review studies met the criteria and contained 288 relevant studies on the risks of FGM. It was suggested that FGM had various physical, obstetric, sexual, and psychological consequences. Women with FGM experienced mental disturbances (e.g., psychiatric diagnoses, anxiety, somatization, phobia, and low self-esteem) than other women. Our study can provide evidence on improving, changing behaviors, and making decisions on the quality of services offered to women suffering from FGM.