Particularities of the expertise of unconsummated marriage

In Tunisia, unconsummated marriage can be a legal ground for divorce under loss incurred by a spouse. The medical expert is asked to rule on the ability of one or both spouses to perform sexual relations. Aims - We aim to highlight the particularities of this type of expertise as well as the difficulties it poses. Methods - A retrospective study was conducted at the department of Forensic Medecine of the Hospital Habib Bourguiba of Sfax, consisting in the review of the files of medico-legal reports of divorce cases for loss incurred on the ground of unconsummated marriage, during a period of 12 years (2006-2018). Results - Twenty-eight expert reports meeting inclusion criteria were collected. The average age of the male spouses was 41.77 years and that of the wives was 33.14 years. In the light of the data from the interrogation, the physical examination and the para-clinical examinations, the experts concluded the presence of an erectile dysfunction as an etiology of unconsummated marriage in 18% of cases, a premature ejaculation in 11% of cases and a vaginismus in 7% of cases. The psychiatric etiology was retained in 25% of the cases. However, in 39% of cases, no etiology of unconsummated marriage could be identified. Conclusion - To establish the diagnosis of the sexual dysfunction responsible for an unconsummated marriage and to look for the etiology constitutes a great challenge for the expert who must comply with a rigorous medico-legal strategy and act with all diligence especially regarding invasive complementary examinations. (C) 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.