International Day to End Obstetric Fistula

Today is International Day to End Obstetric Fistula.
Obstetric Fistula is a hole between the birth canal and the bladder or rectum caused by prolonged, obstructed labour without treatment.
Obstetric fistula is one of the most serious and tragic injuries that can occur during childbirth.
The condition typically leaves women incontinent, and as a result they are often shunned by their communities. Sufferers often endure depression, social isolation and deepening poverty.
Many women live with the condition for years – or even decades – because they cannot afford to obtain treatment.
An estimated 2 million women in sub-Saharan Africa, Asia, the Arab region, and Latin America and the Caribbean are living with this injury, and some 50,000 to 100,000 new cases develop each year.
Yet fistula is almost entirely preventable. Its persistence is a sign that health systems are failing to meet women’s essential needs.
Obstetric fistula is preventable; it can largely be avoided by:
  • delaying the age of first pregnancy;
  • the cessation of harmful traditional practices; and
  • timely access to obstetric care.
Preventing and managing obstetric fistula contribute to the Millennium Development Goal 5 of improving maternal health.
Source: UN

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