|
|
Hospital Treats Two ‘Stone Maidens’One just born, another just married 03/05/08 -- “It’s so unusual that we would see two ‘stone maidens’* in such a short time!” said a doctor from the Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital, absolutely flabbergasted by the situation. In recent days, the hospital saw two rare ‘stone maidens’, one a young woman that had just gotten married and another a newborn infant girl. Three-month-old found to be ‘stone maiden’ A few days ago, a couple brought their newborn baby girl, only three months old, from the northern part of Jiangsu province** to Nanjing to see a doctor. When the girl was just born, the parents did not notice anything unusual about the child. A short time later, however, when the parents were bathing the infant, they noticed that her genitals had a bulge. “I’ve worked in gynecology for more than forty years, but this is the first time I’ve seen a girl this young with an imperforate hymen.” Directer Ha Baoshu, a gynecologist at Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital examined the girl and discovered that there was indeed a bulge in the infant’s vagina. Ha also discovered that the girl’s hymen was completely closed. A girl with a sealed hymen, also known as an imperforate hymen***, is called a ‘stone maiden’, which describes a condition in which the female reproductive organs have developed abnormally. The hospital organized a team of experts to operate on the girl and correct the vaginal bulge. Considering the age of the girl, and that her condition would not affect her immediate development, the group also decided that they should wait until the girl is a bit older before proceeding with any other operations. Ha Baoshu reminded the parents to be watchful during their daily care of the girl and to seek immediate medical attention if they found anything unusual. Newlywed ‘stone maiden’ unable to consummate At the same time that the physicians of Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital were grappling with the infant case, the hospital received another ‘stone maiden’, although this one was not an infant, but a young newly married woman. As this twenty-something girl discussed her condition with the doctor, she blushed and lowered her head in embarrassment. She had just gotten married, but during her and her husband’s first night together, they realized that they couldn’t have normal sexual intercourse because she was also a ‘stone maiden’ with an imperforate hymen. She had no choice but to seek medical treatment at the hospital, hoping that an operation could bring them ‘satisfaction’****. The girl told that doctors that when she was in her early adolescence***** and all the other girls her age were having their periods, hers did not come. She later went to a hospital to be examined and the doctors told her and her family that she had an imperforate hymen. It was then that she first learned she was a ‘stone maiden’. Later, she had an operation at a hospital to create an opening in her hymen, which allowed her to have a regular menstrual period, but the operation was not a complete success in that the opening was still too small. Thus, she was unable to properly consummate her new marriage. Imperforate hymen may affect fertility According to Ha Baoshu, a ‘stone maiden’s’ sealed hymen may result in the abnormal development of her womb and vagina. Without a vaginal opening, a girl may have no trouble in childhood, but when she reaches adolescence and menarche, the blood from each month’s menses cannot escape, accumulating within the vagina or womb. With each menstrual period, there is more and more buildup, which puts increasing pressure on the womb and vagina until some menstrual material is forced into the fallopian tubes******. As blood and other hematological waste fills up the long and narrow Fallopian tubes, the tubes become obstructed, affecting future fertility. Can ‘stone maidens’ get married and enjoy family life? The answer certainly is yes. The majority of ‘stone maidens’ can be cured and marry. [Full Text] *‘Stone maiden’ is the literal translation for the Chinese ‘石女’. The term is a colloquial Chinese euphemism for certain abnormalities of the female genitalia that impede normal sexual intercourse. As with many such euphemisms with common currency among the general public, the term is not medically precise and refers to conditions ranging from vaginal agenesis (absence of the vagina) to varying degrees of vaginal hypoplasia to anomalies of hymen formation. In this article, the term denotes an imperforate hymen. **The northern region of Jiangsu province is referred to as ‘Subei’ and is sometimes stigmatized as undeveloped and poverty-stricken. *** An imperforate hymen is accompanied by ‘bulging introitus’, the medical term for the infant’s vaginal bulge described in the article. The bulge results from vaginal secretions by the infant in response to maternal hormones. If untreated, the mucus will be reabsorbed by the child and the imperforate hymen will remain asymptomatic until the child begins menstruating. The incidence of imperforate hymen is difficult to estimate. One study in the International Journal of Epidemiology, determined that approximately 1 in 2000 females may present with the condition (Parazzini F. et al. The frequency of imperforate hymen in Northern Italy. Int J Epidemiol 19: 763, 1990). Another study put the incidence at 1 in 1000 females. (Stelling JR. Dominant transmission of imperforate hymen. Fertil Steril 74(6): 1241-4, 2000). Neither study is representative of the Chinese population. ****The word rendered ‘satisfaction’ in this translation literally means ‘sexual good fortune’ (性福). It is a Chinese pun on the word ‘happiness’ (幸福). The first characters in both words have the same pronunciation, but unrelated meanings; the second character in both words is the same. *****Literal translation of ‘early adolescence’: ‘more than 10 years old’. ******Hematosalpinx. Reporting by Kong Xiaoming --Translated by D. Owen Young Go to original article: ( categories: Chinese | Xiandai Kuaibao (The Modern Bulletin) )
|
User loginNavigationSyndicate |