International FGM conference at MedUni Vienna

(Vienna, 01-07-2009) On 29th und 30th June 2009, the two-day conference “Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) – State of the Art of Treatment and Prevention” was held at the Art Nouveau Lecture Hall of the Medical University of Vienna (MUV).

This conference has been organised by the Vienna Programme for Female Health jointly with the Medical University of Vienna and the women’s health centre FEM Süd. Approximately 150 participants attended the conference. Univ. Prof.ⁱⁿ Dr.ⁱⁿ Karin Gutierrez-Lobos, Deputy Rector for HR Development & the Promotion of Women’s Issues, explains: “Due to migration and the steady influx of foreigners, the problem of female genital mutilation is encountered more and more frequently in Europe as well. With its specialists, MedUni Vienna helps develop international standards and set up top-quality health care in this field in Austria.”

Organisers have been able to attract national and international experts as lecturers and workshop leaders. These experts will report on experiences in medical care and prevention of FGM in the individual EU countries. Thousands of women affected by FGM live in Austria, many of them in Vienna. They suffer from one of the cruellest forms of violence. “This brutality needs to be stopped, and information campaigns are needed here,” explained Health and Social Affairs City Councillor Mag.^a Sonja Wehsely and the Vienna Surgeon General for Women’s Affairs Univ. Prof.ⁱⁿ Dr.ⁱⁿ Beate Wimmer-Puchinger.

At the conference, new approaches for prevention were presented to ensure that girls will be spared such a fate in future. This includes presentation of the National Action Plan against FGM. Other key issues covered at the conference include: care in gynaecology and obstetrics, possibilities of reconstructive surgery, and dealing with FGM as psychic trauma. The conference aimed to facilitate an exchange of knowledge among experts in the health care sector.

The extent of genital mutilation worldwide
Unfortunately, around the globe, female genital mutilation is not yet a thing of the past. World Health Organization (WHO) defines female genital mutilation as "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external genitalia, whether for cultural or any other non-medical reasons". A total of 155 million women have undergone this cruel intervention in their childhood, and it is assumed that every day another 7,000 girls, mainly in African countries, are becoming victims of this “ritual”. According to estimates, some 8,000 affected women live in Austria.

Lifelong health consequences of FGM
The affected girls and women frequently suffer throughout their lives from the severe health consequences of the mutilation of their genitals. These consequences range from sexual dysfunctions, frequent infection, increased risk of childbirth complications, to severe lifelong psychic traumas.

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