“The Barbie” cosmetic surgery procedure is gaining popularity. (QMI Agency photo illustration)

OTTAWA - Increasing numbers of women are getting radical plastic surgery on their genitals.

In a practise dubbed "cosmetic-gyn," surgeons in the United States and Canada are setting up shop to snip and cut the vulva in order to "beautify" women's vaginas.

The most extreme form is called "The Barbie," where the labia minora are totally cut away, often followed by permanent laser removal of all pubic hair, leaving a featureless, smooth line.

"I had girls as young as 12 in my office requesting surgery," said Dr. Jennifer Blake, professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Toronto.

"I find it disturbing, what is being considered normal is to have an insignificant labia minora, which are similar to what you see in prepubescent girls. It's not normal for an adult woman."

"Some of these cosmetic surgery clinics offer mother-daughter specials," Blake adds. "I see women who have had these procedures who present with pain."

The American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology does not recognize the practice, while the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada is working on a position statement.

The surgery usually costs about $5,000 US and is promoted at the annual Congress on Aesthetic Vaginal Surgery in the U.S., where doctors show graphic before-and-after photos of women's genitals, comparing handiwork. They use the images to sell the procedure on their websites.

"Baby boomers drove the acceptance of these procedures and fuelled the growth of this subspeciality," said Dr. Red Alinsod in a statement on his website. "Women did not want to live with unflattering, sagging, and large labias, nor did they want to live with gaping open vaginas and lack of sensation when having sexual relations."

Concerned physicians are also seeing women who have had other cosmetic alterations that originate in the pornography industry, including anal bleaching and injection of silicone into the G-spot, inside of the anterior wall of the vagina. They warn there are no studies looking into the long term consequences of these surgeries.

at the annual Congress on Aesthetic Vaginal Surgery