Re: New UN study for first time shows dangers of Female Genital Mutilation for child

[Guest guest]

Chifu,

Thanks for posting this here.It's absolutely heart breaking to see that Kenya is on top of the CHARTS! Yes, we lead in everything.From corruption to mutilating our young women FOR THE SAKE OF OUTDATED TRADITIONS.God

help us.This is one area our leaders keep on talking about BUT does nothing about it.Someone should table a bill in Bunge after the Njoki Ndungu bill sails through.

Enuff..as Mkawasi would put it.Phew-my head spins.Ugh jameni!

What do you think Janet wetu and Mwende Mwinzi?

Wams

On 6/2/06, Chifu <chifu2222@...> wrote:

New UN study for first time shows dangers of Female Genital Mutilationfor childbirth2 June 2006 – Women who have had Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) are

significantly more likely to experience difficulties during childbirthand their babies are more likely to die as a result of the traditionalyet gruesome practice, according to a new United Nations studyreleased today, which reiterated calls for total abolition of a

practice that currently affects 100 million people worldwide.The study, the first to give clear evidence of the harmful effects forwomen and babies, cites serious complications during childbirthinclude the need to have a caesarean section, dangerously heavy

bleeding after the birth and prolonged hospitalization, with thedegree of complications increasing depending on the extent andseverity of the FGM.The death rate among babies during and immediately after birth is also

much higher, in some case up to about 55 per cent. Because the studywas carried out in hospitals, experts said death and harm rates wereprobably significantly higher overall, as many women in the societies

where FGM is practiced give birth at home. " As a result of this study we have, for the first time, evidence thatdeliveries among women who have been subject to FGM are significantlymore likely to be complicated and dangerous, " UN World Health

Organization (WHO) Assistant Director-General for Family and CommunityHealth Joy Phumaphi said of the practice which is particularly commonin Africa. " FGM is a practice steeped in culture and tradition but it should not

be allowed to carry on. We must support communities in their effortsto abandon the practice and to improve care for those who haveundergone FGM. We must also steadfastly resist the medicalization ofFGM. WHO is totally opposed to FGM being carried out by medical

personnel, " she added.Women who have been subjected to the most serious form of FGM - FGMIII comprising excision of part or all of the external genitalia andstitching/narrowing of the vaginal opening - will have on average 30

per cent more caesarean sections compared with those who have not hadany FGM.Similarly there is a 70 per cent increase in numbers of womensuffering from postpartum haemorrhage in those with FGM III compared

to those women without FGM.As for the newborns, the researchers found an increased need toresuscitate those whose mothers had had FGM, 66 per cent higher in thecase women of FGM III.The death rate during and immediately after birth is also much higher

for those born to mothers with FGM: 15 per cent so in those with FGM I(excision of the prepuce, with or without excision of part or all ofthe clitoris); 32 per cent in those with FGM II (excision of theclitoris with partial or total excision of the labia minora); and 55

per cent in those with FGM III.It is estimated that in the African context an additional 10 to 20babies die per 1,000 deliveries as a result of the practice.WHO's Director of the Special Programme for Human Reproduction

Research (HRP), Van Look, noted that the study was based only onresearch carried out in hospitals. " The consequences for the countlesswomen and babies who deliver at home without the help of experienced

staff are likely to be even worse, " he said.The study involved 28,393 women at 28 obstetric centres in sixcountries, where FGM is common - Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria,Senegal and Sudan. The centres varied from relatively isolated rural

hospitals to teaching hospitals in capital cities.Although practices vary from country to country, FGM is generallyperformed on girls under 10 years of age and leads to varying amountsof scar formation. It is not entirely clear why FGM leads to increased

complications during childbirth, but one possible explanation is thatthis scar tissue is relatively inelastic and can lead to obstructionand tearing of the tissues around the vagina during childbirth. " FGM remains a pressing human rights issue and reliable evidence

regarding its harmful effects, both for mothers and their babies,should contribute to the abandonment of the practice, " WHO said. " Itis in direct violation of young girls' rights, has both short-term and

long-term adverse health consequences, and is an unnecessary procedure. " http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=18718 & Cr=genital & Cr1=mutilation

[Guest guest]

Chifu,

Thanks for posting this here.It's absolutely heart breaking to see that Kenya is on top of the CHARTS! Yes, we lead in everything.From corruption to mutilating our young women FOR THE SAKE OF OUTDATED TRADITIONS.God

help us.This is one area our leaders keep on talking about BUT does nothing about it.Someone should table a bill in Bunge after the Njoki Ndungu bill sails through.

Enuff..as Mkawasi would put it.Phew-my head spins.Ugh jameni!

What do you think Janet wetu and Mwende Mwinzi?

Wams

On 6/2/06, Chifu <chifu2222@...> wrote:

New UN study for first time shows dangers of Female Genital Mutilationfor childbirth2 June 2006 – Women who have had Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) are

significantly more likely to experience difficulties during childbirthand their babies are more likely to die as a result of the traditionalyet gruesome practice, according to a new United Nations studyreleased today, which reiterated calls for total abolition of a

practice that currently affects 100 million people worldwide.The study, the first to give clear evidence of the harmful effects forwomen and babies, cites serious complications during childbirthinclude the need to have a caesarean section, dangerously heavy

bleeding after the birth and prolonged hospitalization, with thedegree of complications increasing depending on the extent andseverity of the FGM.The death rate among babies during and immediately after birth is also

much higher, in some case up to about 55 per cent. Because the studywas carried out in hospitals, experts said death and harm rates wereprobably significantly higher overall, as many women in the societies

where FGM is practiced give birth at home. " As a result of this study we have, for the first time, evidence thatdeliveries among women who have been subject to FGM are significantlymore likely to be complicated and dangerous, " UN World Health

Organization (WHO) Assistant Director-General for Family and CommunityHealth Joy Phumaphi said of the practice which is particularly commonin Africa. " FGM is a practice steeped in culture and tradition but it should not

be allowed to carry on. We must support communities in their effortsto abandon the practice and to improve care for those who haveundergone FGM. We must also steadfastly resist the medicalization ofFGM. WHO is totally opposed to FGM being carried out by medical

personnel, " she added.Women who have been subjected to the most serious form of FGM - FGMIII comprising excision of part or all of the external genitalia andstitching/narrowing of the vaginal opening - will have on average 30

per cent more caesarean sections compared with those who have not hadany FGM.Similarly there is a 70 per cent increase in numbers of womensuffering from postpartum haemorrhage in those with FGM III compared

to those women without FGM.As for the newborns, the researchers found an increased need toresuscitate those whose mothers had had FGM, 66 per cent higher in thecase women of FGM III.The death rate during and immediately after birth is also much higher

for those born to mothers with FGM: 15 per cent so in those with FGM I(excision of the prepuce, with or without excision of part or all ofthe clitoris); 32 per cent in those with FGM II (excision of theclitoris with partial or total excision of the labia minora); and 55

per cent in those with FGM III.It is estimated that in the African context an additional 10 to 20babies die per 1,000 deliveries as a result of the practice.WHO's Director of the Special Programme for Human Reproduction

Research (HRP), Van Look, noted that the study was based only onresearch carried out in hospitals. " The consequences for the countlesswomen and babies who deliver at home without the help of experienced

staff are likely to be even worse, " he said.The study involved 28,393 women at 28 obstetric centres in sixcountries, where FGM is common - Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria,Senegal and Sudan. The centres varied from relatively isolated rural

hospitals to teaching hospitals in capital cities.Although practices vary from country to country, FGM is generallyperformed on girls under 10 years of age and leads to varying amountsof scar formation. It is not entirely clear why FGM leads to increased

complications during childbirth, but one possible explanation is thatthis scar tissue is relatively inelastic and can lead to obstructionand tearing of the tissues around the vagina during childbirth. " FGM remains a pressing human rights issue and reliable evidence

regarding its harmful effects, both for mothers and their babies,should contribute to the abandonment of the practice, " WHO said. " Itis in direct violation of young girls' rights, has both short-term and

long-term adverse health consequences, and is an unnecessary procedure. " http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=18718 & Cr=genital & Cr1=mutilation