Washington Times Examines Fistula in Ethiopia

Mar 07, 2006

The Washington Times ...examined the problem of fistulas in Ethiopia (Pisik, Washington Times, 3/5). Obstetric fistulas develop when a fetus becomes lodged during labor in the narrow birth canal of a young woman, causing pressure that blocks blood to vital tissues and tearing holes in the bowel, urethra or both, causing incontinence (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 1/20). Fistulas also can develop as a result of rape, female circumcision and accidents, the Times reports (Washington Times, 3/5). Physicians can repair a small fistula surgically in less than 2 hours, but to repair a larger fistula and restore a woman's continence might require more than one surgery, according to Marcella Roenneburg, a physician in Southern Africa (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 1/20). The Hamlin Trust, an organization that runs three hospitals in Ethiopia, estimates that about 150,000 women in the country have the condition. The Hamlin Trust, which can perform 1,500 surgeries annually to repair fistulas, provides no-cost care to patients though the surgery and the recovery period, costing the group about $300 to $400 per patient. The Hamlin Trust, with funding from the Kellogg Foundation, also has medical teams that travel throughout rural Ethiopia and operate a medical facility for women with incurable fistulas (Washington Times, 3/5).