The Relation Between Female Genital Perception and Genital Measurements: Does Size Matter?

INTRODUCTION AND HYPOTHESIS: Our aim was to measure the widths of labia minora and clitoral hood lengths of women not seeking labiaplasty and to assess their perceptions of their genitals using Female Genital Self Image Scale (FGSIS) scores to discuss whether size affects women's perceptions of their genitalia and also contribute to the literature on genital anatomy variation.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted in the gynecology clinic of a tertiary hospital, between February 2024 and July 2024, and included 200 women aged between 18 and 45 not requesting labiaplasty. The clitoral hood and bilateral labia minora width dimensions of every woman were measured and an FGSIS questionnaire was completed. An investigation was conducted as to whether correlations between women's FGSIS scores and clitoral-hood lengths, labia-minora width dimensions and other variables could be observed.

RESULTS

In this study, the right labia minora width mean was 18.66 ± 9.64 mm, the left labia minora width mean was measured as 19.07 ± 9.40 mm and the clitoral hood mean was 17.43 ± 7.16 mm. When the patients' age, body mass index, parity, education level, frequency of coitus, and clitoral hood and labia minora measurements were compared with the FGSIS scores, no statistically significant correlations were found among them (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Our study conducted with 200 women not seeking genital surgery showed that there is a wide range of genital anatomical variation, and there is no connection between labia minora width or clitoral hood length and female genital perception according to FGSIS scores. When evaluating patients' perception of their genitalia, it is advisable to avoid setting specific anatomical measurement limits and offering directive assessments based on those results.