{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,16]],"date-time":"2026-10-16T11:31:45Z","timestamp":1792150305611,"version":"4.4.0"},"reference-count":37,"publisher":"BMJ","issue":"1","funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100005492","name":"Stanford University","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100005492","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["bmj.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Med Humanities"],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,17]]},"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2024,3]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>This article analyses the conceptual histories of words associated with female genital parts to explore how they may affect the lived experience of people with these parts and the quality of gynaecological care they receive. Specifically, we examine the implications of using the word \u2018vagina\u2019 to replace the word \u2018vulva\u2019, or indeed to indicate the entire female genitalia. This article does so through an analysis of existing scholarly work and through text mining methods such as word frequencies, most distinctive word collocates and word-embeddings drawn from literary and women\u2019s magazine corpora. We find that words indicating specific female genital parts are very infrequently mentioned in our corpora, which shows that there is a troubling lack of exposure and education in our socio-cultural context when it comes to the female genital anatomy. When they are mentioned, their usage reflects historical and patriarchal associations that have been primarily attached to the word \u2018vagina\u2019. When it comes to the \u2018vagina\u2019 and \u2018vulva\u2019, the penis is the most prevalent association by far; whereas the most commonly occurring female genital parts are parts to do with reproduction\u2014reinforcing a long-standing and disproportionate emphasis on the female genitalia\u2019s reproductive function. Our research also reveals a concerning emphasis on non-evidence-based female hygiene products, thus perpetuating the damaging stereotype of the dirty vagina. These findings may explain many negative patient outcomes such as stigma attached to seeking out timely gynaecological care, lack of informed medical consent and non-evidence-based practices exacerbated by problematic cultural depictions of the female genitalia. They can also explain the neglect of female sexual agency, pleasure and well-being. Understanding historical and contemporary usages of words for the female genitalia has important implications for the quality of patient care today and is a critical component of gender and reproductive justice.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1136\/medhum-2023-012747","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,12,26]],"date-time":"2023-12-26T13:20:19Z","timestamp":1703596819000},"page":"86-94","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1136\/crossmarkpolicy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":5,"title":["Conceptual anatomy of the female genitalia using text mining and implications for patient care"],"prefix":"10.1136","volume":"50","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4576-1415","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Carmen","family":"Thong","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"English, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4856-6962","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alexis","family":"Doyle","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"239","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,12,26]]},"reference":[{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.1","unstructured":"Algee-Hewitt M. , and McGurl M. . 2015. \u201cBetween Canon and Corpus: Six Perspectives on 20th-Century Novels.\u201d Stanford Literary Lab Pamphlet 8. https:\/\/litlab.stanford.edu\/assets\/pdf\/LiteraryLabPamphlet8.pdf."},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"351","DOI":"10.1111\/j.2044-8341.1985.tb02652.x","article-title":"\u201cDangers of the Vagina.\u201d","volume":"58 (Pt 4)","author":"Beit-Hallahmi","year":"1985","journal-title":"The British Journal of Medical Psychology"},{"issue":"3","key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"190","DOI":"10.1080\/15240657.2017.1349509","article-title":"\u201cThe Clitoris: Anatomical and Psychological Issues.\u201d","volume":"18","author":"Blechner","year":"2017","journal-title":"Studies in Gender and Sexuality"},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0959353599009004024"},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/1467-9481.00148"},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/02646830020032374"},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"S153","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jsxm.2022.03.354","article-title":"\u201cFemale Sexual Medicine: What Are Students Learning in Undergraduate Medical Education?\u201d","volume":"19","author":"Codispoti","year":"2022","journal-title":"The Journal of Sexual Medicine"},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.8","unstructured":"Dawkins A . 2016. \u201cWarning: Explicit Content.\u201d In Intellectual Freedom Blog: The Office for Intellectual Freedom of the American Library Association. https:\/\/www.oif.ala.org\/warning-explicit-content\/."},{"issue":"3","key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"223","DOI":"10.1007\/s11930-023-00371-0","article-title":"\u201cWomen\u2019s Orgasm and Its Relationship with Sexual Satisfaction and Well-Being.\u201d","volume":"15","author":"Dienberg","year":"2023","journal-title":"Current Sexual Health Reports"},{"key":"2025092412462334000_50.1.86.10","unstructured":"Diotima . n.d. \u201cWomen\u2019s Life in Greece and Rome: Selections.\u201d Available from: https:\/\/diotima-doctafemina.org\/translations\/anthologies\/womens-life-in-greece-and-rome-selections\/ix-medicine-and-anatomy\/351-comparison-of-male-and-female-anatomy\/. 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