|
Riyadh: More than 325 "gender correction" operations were conducted in one Saudi hospital over the past 25 years, medical doctors in Saudi Arabia said.
The operations, viewed as personal secrets in the conservative Kingdom, were conducted at King Abdul Aziz hospital in Jeddah.
Dr Yaser Jamal, Consultant and Professor of Paediatrics and cosmetics at the College of Medicine, King Abdul Aziz University in Jeddah told Gulf News that more than 60 sex correction cases are still "on the waiting list" at the hospital.
He noted that sex change is illegal according to Islamic Sharia but sex correction is legal. He urged the public to support this segment that has been victim of wrong diagnosis at birth.
Saudi Arabia does not allow surgery for transsexuals, but permits operations on people with an intersex condition.
Dr Jamal, who is also chairman of the Saudi Paediatrics Surgery Society, said that the sex identification and correction centre, affiliated to the Jeddah King Abdul Aziz University Hospital, is in need of support to enable it to admit cases from all over Saudi Arabia.
Speaking about the public's misperception of sex change and sex correction, Dr Jamal pointed out that correction means transforming one person from a wrong gender status to his real sex, which is not prohibited in Islam, while sex change is when people with normal genitalia but who believe that they belong to the opposite sex, want to change their sex. The latter runs contrary to Islamic teachings, he added.
Dr Jamal explained that the cost of a single sex correction operation is between $13,000 (Dh47,735) and $16,000 (Dh58,751) depending on the patient's age and his individual case.
He pointed out that marriage among kin is a leading factor in "sex disorders." "Five brothers between the ages of 17 to 38 from one family underwent sex correction operations last year. It appears that kin marriage is the key factor of their problem. Hormone consumption is another factor as well," Dr Jamal indicated.
Asked about the best age for the surgical operation, he said early childhood is the best period for the operation. "From the psychological, social and surgical aspects, childhood is the best stage for conducting sex correction operations," he concluded.
|
