FEMALE GENITAL PLASTICN SURGERY: WHEN AESTHETIC DESIRE OUTPERFORMS THERAPEUTIC INDICATION

Abstract

This study aims to critically review the most recent literature on the growth and dissemination of female genital cosmetic surgery (FGCS) performed exclusively for aesthetic purposes, disregarding the importance of clinical indication. The present work seeks to analyze, from a critical perspective, the recent expansion and popularization of FGCS when carried out solely for cosmetic reasons, detached from any formal therapeutic justification. This practice has become consolidated due to functional, sexual, and appearance-related concerns, as access to information has been increasingly facilitated by the widespread use of the Internet and social media, which intensify exposure and adherence to aesthetic standards of both the physical body and the genitalia. Studies reveal that the recent implementation of this surgical practice, combined with the growing interest among a predominantly young adult population, significant methodological gaps, and the absence of technical standardization, heighten the risks associated with FGCS and compromise the reproducibility of its outcomes. Moreover, intimate surgery aimed at anatomical and functional repair of sequelae resulting from female genital mutilation — a traditional practice in certain ethnic groups — is not included within the scope of this review, as it has a legitimate therapeutic indication and restorative purpose. It is concluded that FGCS, when motivated exclusively by aesthetic reasons, represents a phenomenon of increasing medicalization of appearance, in which physiological characteristics are interpreted as flaws to be corrected. This logic shifts the focus of health care, transforming it into an instrument of aesthetic conformity and social approval, thus demanding ethical, critical, and interdisciplinary reflection on the boundaries between bodily autonomy, cultural influence, and responsible medical practice.