Virginity and Its Medicolegal Examination

Key points

• • Virginity means a woman has not had sexual intercourse, and questions about it arise in some legal and social disputes.
• • The hymen is a thin fold at the vaginal opening, and an intact hymen suggests but does not prove virginity.
• • The hymen can be torn by causes other than intercourse, such as injury or examination, and some remain intact after intercourse.
• • Defloration means the tearing of the hymen, and recent tears may show bleeding and tenderness while old tears heal as notches.
• • Because the signs are not certain, the doctor reports the findings factually and avoids a firm opinion the findings cannot support.