Project 176531

The traditional practice of Female Genital Cutting/Circumcision/Mutilation/ (FGC) has received a great deal of attention over the years, principally within the reproductive health community. This research has focused on the health outcomes with respect to pregnancy, delivery, and infections of the reproductive tract, but to date, there have been no studies to understand the effects of FGC beyond the reproductive system and on the whole body. This project is unique in its use of a mixture of research methods to gain an understanding of how the procedure might affect parts of the body other than the reproductive system and hence, the everyday lives of women with FGC. To do this we will recruit 25-30 Somali women with FGC from the Greater Toronto Area who have Type III FGC described by the WHO as the most extensive form of genital cutting. Participants will be involved in a series of interviews, questionnaires and medical exams. The interview consists of open-ended questions to create conversation about pain, pleasure and other bodily sensations the women experience during their daily lives. A standard pain questionnaire will assess chronic pain, including pain of the region cut, while a psychological questionnaire will ask about mental health. The physical exam will determine the extent of the genital cutting and provide further information about sensory experience. The results of the proposed study will improve the health of immigrant, minority women living in North America by bringing together women's personal accounts of their daily experience with the physical signs of pain and altered sensation. We hope that such a linkage will help shift the focus of women's health research to a broader understanding of women's bodies as a whole as well as provide a deeper understanding of the daily bodily experiences of an underserved population of women.