The Doing/Undoing of MRKH and the Doing of Gestational Pregnancy and Gender Through Uterus Transplants

Dados Bibliográficos

ID6908504
AutoresSophia Avice (Monash University), Andrea Whittaker (0000-0003-2662-8827), Hannah Gibson (0000-0003-0752-0968, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain)
Ano2025
Volume44
Fascículo8
Páginas709-726
Data de publicação2025-11-17
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoMedical Anthropology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0145-9740 • E-ISSN: 1545-5882
EditoraInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/01459740.2025.2599475
PMID41384309
OpenAlexW4417268750
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas1
Referências citadas52

Women with the rare Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser (MRKH) syndrome are born without a uterus. Following international interviews with 34 women with MRKH and 15 surgeons and specialists, we explore how the usually invisible condition of MRKH is made visible and "done" through biomedicine. MRKH is highly medicalized, with much work undertaken to make MRKH bodies fit heteronormative standards. Some people with MRKH prefer to define themselves as intersex. Others undertake uterus transplants (UTx), to experience menstruation, gestation, and birth. UTx reconstructs their bodies to heteronormative expectations at the same time as it reinforces gendered identity as normative women, and potentially as mothers