Gynecological examinations for social and legal reasons in Turkey: hospital data.
Women in Turkey are subjected to gynecologic examinations not only for legal reasons, such as sexual assault or violence against pregnant women, but also for various social reasons, such as suspicions of premarital intercourse, prostitution, loss of virginity, and pregnancy at the time of entering into a new marriage. The examinations are performed by general practitioners, forensic physicians, and gynecologists. This study presents social reasons for gynecologic examinations of women in Turkey. We analyzed the reasons for gynecologic examination of 412 women at the 1st Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Sisli Etfal Training and Research Hospital, between January 1, 1999 and June 30, 2001. Out of 27,376 women at the Department, 412 (1.5%) underwent gynecologic examination for social or legal reasons: 82 (19.9%) for entering into a new marriage, 41 (10.1%) for violence against pregnant women, 28 (6.7%) for sexual assault, 53 (12.8%) for suspicion of prostitution, and 208 (50.5%) for the determination of virginity. Gynecologic examinations for legal or social reasons in Turkey are still rather common. Medicolegal regulation of gynecological examinations should be changed to protect women's human rights.