Black Women : Fistula Prevention

cherryblossom

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Feb 28, 2009
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Welcome to West Africa FISTULA Foundation

The West Africa Fistula Foundation (WAFF) was founded to bring value back to the lives of the women of Sierra Leone by providing them with access to education and resources to help reduce the number of new fistulas and to surgically remedy those that already exist. The West Africa Fistula Foundation (WAFF) is a foundation dedicated and designed to empower the people of Sierra Leone to become more healthy and economically secure, by giving them the abilities and the knowledge to support themselves and their families.

Sierra Leone has become the worlds poorest country due to the havoc and devastation caused by over 10 years of civil war. The lack and inadequacy of their ability to provide obstetric, gynecological care and services have resulted in a extremely high number of obstetric fistula cases, commonly known and referred to as Vesico Vaginal Fistula (VVF). This an abnormal connection between the bladder and the vagina caused by obstructed labor during child birth. These women can spend from 2 to 15 days of labor, as there is not a choice for a Cesarean childbirth in most third world countries. It's estimated that 2 - 3 million women in Africa suffer from (VVF).

The main goal and objective at West Africa Fistula Foundation is to provide not only badly needed medical treatment, but also a working staff built upon from with-in the country itself, to establish proper care and treatment for this terrible condition that these women must endure day in and day out. They are often ostracized by the communities that they live in and their husbands usually abandon them to fend for themselves. Many die in labor there-by creating the worlds highest documented maternal mortality rate among the nations of the world.

http://www.westafricafistulafoundation.org/index.htm
 
Obstetric fistula is a hole in the birth canal caused by prolonged labour without prompt medical intervention, usually a Caesarean section. The woman is left with chronic incontinence and, in most cases, a stillborn baby.

The smell of leaking urine or faeces, or both, is constant and humiliating, often driving loved ones away. Left untreated, fistula can lead to chronic medical problems, including ulcerations, kidney disease, and nerve damage in the legs.

Surgery can normally repair the injury, with success rates as high as 90 per cent for experienced surgeons. The average cost of fistula treatment and post-operative care is just US $300. Sadly, most women with the condition do not know that treatment is available, or they cannot afford it.


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Like maternal mortality, fistula is almost entirely preventable. But at least 2 million women in Africa, Asia and the Arab region are living with the condition, and some 50,000 to 100,000 new cases develop each year. The persistence of fistula is a signal that health systems are failing to meet the needs of women.

Obstetric fistula occurs disproportionately among impoverished girls and women, especially those living far from medical services. Affecting the most powerless members of society, it touches on nearly every aspect of UNFPA's mandate, including reproductive health and rights, gender equality, poverty and adolescent reproductive health.

In 2003, UNFPA spearheaded the global Campaign to End Fistula, a collaborative initiative to prevent fistula and restore the health and dignity of those living with its consequences.

http://www.endfistula.org/index.htm
 

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