title: The Value of Virginity.
abstract: Hymen reconstruction surgery is a simple procedure to repair a woman's hymen, requested by women who, for religious and cultural reasons, believe they must appear to have an intact hymen on their wedding night. Debates surrounding possible ethical justification for the procedure are complex and heated. These articles from the Harvard Ethics Consortium present and explore the case of a young woman who asked a young female physician on call for a referral for the procedure.
authors.affiliation: Harvard Medical School, Center for Bioethics, 641 Huntington Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115 USA. christine_mitchell@hms.harvard.edu.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mitchell
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003075:Coitus; D008192:Deception; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D013509:Gynecologic Surgical Procedures / Q000941:ethics*; D006801:Humans; D006924:Hymen / Q000601:surgery*; D008393:Marriage; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000941:ethics*; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000941:ethics*; D012067:Religion; D063507:Sexism; D012746:Sexual Abstinence; D012945:Social Values