Virginity in vogue again

BEIJING (UPI): The newest medical rage among Chinese women indulging in sex before marriage is surgery restoring the impression of virginity.

"For many Chinese men, the most valuable attribute for a bride is virginity," said the China Women's News.

Unmarried females whose hymens have been broken, from sex, accidents or sports, can now have a thin membrane surgically attached. Two Beijing hospitals have successfully performed the surgery on more than 100 women in four months, the article said.

Medical experts say a broken hymen does not prove that an unmarried woman has succumbed to sexual temptation, citing broken hymens in female athletes who are still virgins.

However the newspaper warned against "quacks claiming they can mend ruptured hymens," and the possibility of infections or other complications if the procedure is not carried out properly.