Women who have genital piercings will be recorded as having suffered female genital mutilation (FGM) under new NHS rules due to come into force next month.

The Department of Health said it is "taking every precaution to record genital piercings that have been done within an abusive context" and the reporting regulations are in line with the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The Evening Standard reports that the new mandatory recording regulations will even apply to consenting women who had the procedure for cosmetic reasons or because they believed it would enhance their sex lives.

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FGM is a non-medical procedure that intentionally alters the appearance of, or causes injury to, female genital organs. Piercing and incising were classified as “harmful procedures” and forms of FGM by the WHO in guidelines published last year.

Some 170,000 women and girls are estimated to be living with FGM in the UK. At least 2,600 women and girls who suffered FGM have been treated by the NHS since last September. Nearly 500 women and girls with FGM were seen in NHS trusts in England in January alone.

Over 130 million women and girls have suffered FGM worldwide.

The Government has previously said the Female Genital Mutilation Act 2003 does not contain any exemptions for cosmetic surgery and it has no plans to amend the legislation specifically to prohibit female genital cosmetic surgery.

Shape Created with Sketch. FGM tribal circumcision ceremony in Baringo County Show all 12 left Created with Sketch. right Created with Sketch. Shape Created with Sketch. FGM tribal circumcision ceremony in Baringo County 1/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl cries after being circumcised REUTERS 2/12 Kenya FGM The traditional practice of circumcision within the Pokot tribe is a rite of passage that marks the transition to womanhood and is a requirement for all girls before they marry Reuters 3/12 Kenya FGM Pokot girls are encouraged to leave their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision ceremony REUTERS 4/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County REUTERS 5/12 Kenya FGM Pokot girls, draped in animal skins, sit on rocks during their circumcision ceremony REUTERS 6/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot woman performs a circumcision on a girl REUTERS 7/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot woman holds a razor blade after performing a circumcision on four girls REUTERS 8/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl bleeds onto a rock after being circumcised REUTERS 9/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl is smeared with a white paint after being circumcised REUTERS 10/12 Kenya FGM More than a quarter of girls and women in Kenya have undergone genital cutting, according to United Nations data REUTERS 11/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised Reuters 12/12 Kenya FGM Pokot girls covered with animal skins squat on rocks after being stripped naked and washed during their circumcision rite in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County REUTERS 1/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl cries after being circumcised REUTERS 2/12 Kenya FGM The traditional practice of circumcision within the Pokot tribe is a rite of passage that marks the transition to womanhood and is a requirement for all girls before they marry Reuters 3/12 Kenya FGM Pokot girls are encouraged to leave their hut and make their way to a place where they will take off their clothes and wash during their circumcision ceremony REUTERS 4/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised in a tribal ritual in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County REUTERS 5/12 Kenya FGM Pokot girls, draped in animal skins, sit on rocks during their circumcision ceremony REUTERS 6/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot woman performs a circumcision on a girl REUTERS 7/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot woman holds a razor blade after performing a circumcision on four girls REUTERS 8/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl bleeds onto a rock after being circumcised REUTERS 9/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl is smeared with a white paint after being circumcised REUTERS 10/12 Kenya FGM More than a quarter of girls and women in Kenya have undergone genital cutting, according to United Nations data REUTERS 11/12 Kenya FGM A Pokot girl, covered in animal skins, walks to a place where she will rest after being circumcised Reuters 12/12 Kenya FGM Pokot girls covered with animal skins squat on rocks after being stripped naked and washed during their circumcision rite in a village about 80 kilometres from the town of Marigat in Baringo County REUTERS

A DoH spokeswoman said: "While there are challenges in this area and adult women may have genital piercings, in some communities girls are forced to have them. The World Health Organisation has quite rightly defined this as a form of FGM.

"We are taking every precaution to record genital piercings that have been done within an abusive context.

"The new data collection will help build a picture of the scale and the nature of the problem we are facing. We are continually working on ways to improve and develop the NHS response to this terrible practice."

Additional reporting by PA