Treatment Options
If you’ve been told that you have MRKH and your vagina is incomplete or absent, you have the following options:
- You can do nothing
- Create a vagina using dilators that expand and stretch your existing vagina over time, using intermittent pressure
- Have a surgical procedure, or “vaginoplasty”, or a combination of surgery and dilation
Remember YOU are in control of your own body. Deciding to create or not create a vagina is your decision, and if you decide you want to, when you do so is also your decision! If you’re not planning to have sex, it’s not something you need to do. If you do plan to, creating or expanding your vagina is something you may want to consider.
If you’re thinking about treatment, the medical recommendation is that you consider using dilators first. All of the surgical options require general anesthesia and the use of dilators after the operation, therefore, surgery is not a quick fix, or a way to avoid the need for using dilators.
DILATION
Working with a trained medical professional, dilating involves the use of dilators (tube-like devices of varying sizes) to stretch the vaginal tissue someone with MRKH has to create a deeper vaginal canal. Starting with the smallest dilator, you will need to hold it in the proper spot where the vaginal canal should be (or where a shortened vagina may be) and apply pressure to stretch the canal. You should make sure you work with a trained clinician who will teach you how to use the dilators properly and monitor your progress. The recommendation is typically to use the dilator once or twice daily for 15- 20 minutes. As your vagina stretches, your gynaecologist will give you the next (slightly bigger) size until full length and width is achieved. Once done, the vagina will need to be maintained by either intercourse or dilation approximately once/week.
TESTIMONIAL
"I chose dilation when I was ready to create my vagina. I didn’t have a partner when I started, so I felt like I could take my time with it, and I was glad that I had control over the process. At first, I did find it difficult to get used to the discomfort that comes with dilating, but with time I became used to it. The best way for me to get through a dilation session was to have something to distract me, whether it was a TV show or something to read or listen to. Something I didn’t expect about dilating was that there were periods when I progressed faster than others. There was a period of time when I moved up a dilator size every few weeks, then there was a time when I was on the same size for a couple months. Dilation could be frustrating at times, especially with the time commitment that it required, but in the end I was happy with the result and proud of the work I had put into it." - Anonymous
SURGERY
Surgery to create a vagina, also known as vaginoplasty, involves using tissue or skin from another area of your body to create a vagina. There are several different surgical options to consider.
McIndoe procedure: A vagina is created with a skin graft, usually from your buttocks (bottom) or with a special skin-like material and a vaginal mold. Young women who have this procedure must stay in bed in the hospital after the procedure for about a week so that the newly created vagina will heal. After the operation, a soft dilator must be worn all the time for about 3-6 months, taking it out only to use the bathroom. Even though a vagina is created faster with surgery, it’s still necessary to use a dilator afterwards.
TESTIMONIAL
"I had the McIndoe technique at 16 years old because it was presented to me as the only viable option in 1984. Recovering from the McIndoe technique required healing in two areas of my body - first, my newly created vagina - where the incision and mold were placed; and second, the skin graft area on my backside. Once the mold is removed, dilation is to begin right away. There was some discomfort associated with dilating, so I wasn’t very consistent with it. As a result, I lost some depth in my vagina. Dilation is necessary on an ongoing basis. Though I wasn’t sexually active for many years after the surgery, having had the procedure allowed me to feel I had the option to be sexually active, if I chose to. When I eventually became sexually active, I was able to have sex comfortably. I would choose to have the McIndoe technique again, but with a different awareness from having learned dilating is an important part of ongoing self-care to maintain the results of the surgery and to be your own medical advocate – get second opinions, select a medical professional who is compassionate and understanding, and take your time making the right treatment decision for you." - Anonymous
Williams procedure: This procedure involves the creation of a vaginal “pouch”. It’s sometimes used when other surgical procedures have failed. Dilators are necessary following the procedure, but for only about 3-4 weeks, instead of up to 6 months (which is more typical with the McIndoe procedure). The down side with this procedure is that the angle of the newly created vagina can be awkward and the cosmetic appearance may be poor.
Bowel vagina: This is a major operation which involves creating a vagina using a section of the bowel. The recovery involves 4-6 weeks of healing from major surgery and dilators will need to be used afterwards. Young women who have this procedure usually experience chronic vaginal discharge requiring the need to wear a pad.
Laparoscopy-Vecchietti procedure: This technique involves securing a traction device to the skin outside of the abdomen. This is done during a laparoscopy while the patient is under general anesthesia. At the same time, a plastic bead (about the size of an olive) is placed in the vaginal space and held with string that’s threaded up through the vagina, into the abdominal cavity, and out to the traction device. The vaginal length is achived by using continuous pressure and turning the “crank” on the outside of the abdomin, which pulls the plastic bead upwards. The vagina can be created in about 7-10 days, but requires a long hospital stay to complete the process. Afterwards, a second procedure with anesthesia is necessary to remove the equipment. This procedure also requires the need to use vaginal dilators.
Davydov procedure: The Davydov operation creates a vagina using a patient’s own peritoneal lining: a membrane that lines the walls of the abdominal and pelvic cavities. Under anesthesia, one incision is made where the vaginal opening should be and another incision is made near the belly button to allow a thin instrument to be inserted into the peritoneal cavity. The peritoneal lining is pulled down and stitched in place at the vaginal opening. The top of the newly created vaginal canal is sewn closed and the vaginal space is packed with gauze. The gauze is removed about two days after the operation. Then the patient must use various size vaginal dilators a few times a day for several months or until she becomes sexually active. Most women who have this procedure stay in the hospital overnight for observation and then return for follow-up visits 7-10 days after surgery.
"Having been diagnosed back in 2014, I pushed off any treatment options until I was fully ready to accept this condition. Doing any sort of treatment is a big decision for anyone, you must be both mentally and physically ready or it will not be successful. Dilation is typically recommended as the first treatment option you should try. My specialist was able to show me how the process worked. She said it would take a lot of effort and it would be important to stick with it. I started out with 1cm and by doing dilation on and off for 6 months, I managed to get to around 4 cm (which is amazing). Eventually dilation stopped working for me and I couldn’t get past that 4 cm mark. This sucked because I saw so many people complete the process with no problems. With the many online support pages I was in, I found there were also surgery options out there. I did my research and found the perfect fit for me. Dr. Miklos and Moore out of Atlanta, Georgia offer a surgery called: The Laparoscopic Davydov Neovagina. The procedure creates a full-length vagina immediately using the patient’s own peritoneum or lining of the pelvis. They are very knowledgeable with MRKH patients and were there for me every step of the way. After about three weeks of recovery, I was back to normal. If you are looking to go down the surgery route, I would strongly recommend visiting their website and seeing if this is a good fit for you." https://www.miklosandmoore.com/mrkh-atlanta/
- Tori
(Treatment Information Source: Boston Children’s Hospital)