You will be compiling your bibliography and creating an outline of the changes you will make in this sandbox.

Bibliography As you gather the sources for your Wikipedia contribution, think about the following: Is the source from a reliable publication? Reliable publications include established newspapers, academic journals and books, textbooks, and other published sources with reputations for accuracy and fact-checking. Unreliable sources include blog posts and other self-published works, press releases, and social media posts. Is the source verifiable? In order for a source to be considered verifiable, other editors should be able to consult the source. Is the source independent of the subject? Is the source connected in any way to the subject? This is especially important when writing biographies or about organizations. For example, if you were writing a biography, sources like the person's webpage or personal blog would not be considered independent. Is the source primary or secondary? Primary sources include first-hand accounts, autobiographies, and other original content. Wikipedia allows limited use of primary sources, but typically only for straightforward, descriptive statements of facts, and only if they are published and verifiable without requiring specialized knowledge. Secondary sources should be the main basis for a biography on Wikipedia. If you're working on a topic related to medicine or psychology, ensure that your sources follow these special guidelines. If you're creating a new article, consider the following: Ensure that your topic meets Wikipedia's notability guidelines. In order for a topic to meet the notability requirement, you must be able to identify 2-3 sources that are reliable, verifiable, and independent of the subject you're writing about. Finding sufficient sources to establish notability can be especially hard when writing about people or organizations. Sources that are not independent of the subject might be useful additions, but don't count towards the notability requirement. Wikipedia has developed special guidelines for writing about living persons. Please follow these carefully. Wikipedia has a series of guidelines for writing about different categories of people, such as academics and artists. If you're trying to create a new entry about a living person, please look at these carefully. If you're not sure whether a source is reliable, ask a librarian! If you have questions about Wikipedia's sourcing rules, you can use the Get Help button below to contact your Wikipedia Expert. Get Help

• Almazan, A. N., & Keuroghlian, A. S. (2021). Association between gender-affirming surgeries and mental health outcomes. JAMA Surgery, 156(7), 611–618. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamasurg.2021.0952
  • This study examines the impact of gender-affirming surgeries on mental health outcomes among transgender and gender diverse individuals. Performing a secondary analysis on data from the 2015 US Transgender Survey, the largest existing data set on the topic, the authors found that individuals who had undergone gender-affirming surgeries were significantly less likely to experience past-month psychological distress, past-year tobacco smoking, and past-year suicidal ideation compared to those who had no history of undergoing gender-affirming surgery. To this end, the research highlights the potential mental health benefits of gender-affirming surgeries and advocates for their provision as part of transgender healthcare, providing a comprehensive review of the positive psychological effects of procedures such as vaginoplasty on transgender patients.

• Coleman, E., Radix, A. E., Bouman, W. P., Brown, G. R., de Vries, A. L. C., Deutsch, M. B., ... & Arcelus, J. (2022). Standards of Care for the Health of Transgender and Gender Diverse People, Version 8. International Journal of Transgender Health, 23(sup1), S1–S259. https://doi.org/10.1080/26895269.2022.2100644
  • This document entails the eighth and latest version of the Standards of Care (SOC) for transgender and gender-diverse individuals, the most authoritative set of guidance for gender-affirming care as developed by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH). It delineates the best practices for healthcare providers in various arenas of the needs of trans patients, including mental health, hormone therapy, and surgical interventions. On the specific topic of gender-affirming vaginoplasty, its official, detailed guidelines offer authoritative, updated, and scientifically-backed information that reflects the current medical standards and recommendations covering the entire surgical process—from preoperative requirements to postoperative care, and from assessment of the patient’s need for surgery to its psychological outcome.

• Gallagher, S., Smigelski, C., Luikenaar, R. A. C., & Dugi, D. (2022). Pelvic physical therapy for gender-affirming genital vaginoplasty. In Context, Principles and Practice of TransGynecology: Managing Transgender Patients in ObGyn Practice (pp. 261–266). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108899987.044
  • In this chapter, Gallagher et al. detail both the physiological impacts of gender-affirming genital vaginoplasty on the pelvic floor and the benefit of specialized pelvic floor physical therapy to improve surgical outcomes and address potential complications. It identifies biopsychosocial reasons for the high incidence of pelvic floor muscle dysfunction (PFMD) among transgender women undergoing vaginoplasty. In particular, the authors highlight the history of trauma, which is disproportionately prevalent in the transgender community as one avenue where biological, psychological, and social factors intersect to impact the physical healing outcomes of transgender women undergoing vaginoplasty. As a result, the paper underscores the need for a comprehensive, trauma-informed approach to preoperative and postoperative care that incorporate both physical training and psychological counseling. This holistic care model as proposed by the chapter is vital as surgeons seek to enhance the overall patient outcomes and quality of life after gender-affirming vaginoplasty by addressing PFMD which could lead to higher complication rates and rougher recovery after gender-affirming vaginoplasty.
• Barbara, G., Facchin, F., Buggio, L., Alberico, D., Frattaruolo, M. P., & Kustermann, A. (2017). Vaginal rejuvenation: Current perspectives. International Journal of Women’s Health, 9, 513–519. https://doi.org/10.2147/IJWH.S99700
  • This review article evaluates vaginal rejuvenation, a form of vaginoplasty surgery among cis women, under the umbrella of female genital cosmetic surgery (FGCS). It highlights the reasons driving the increasing demand for vaginal rejuvenation—specifically, the societal norms shaped by media around female body image. Beyond reiterating the ethical and psychological implications of FGCS and critiquing its lack of robust clinical evidence, the article stresses the importance of considering the biopsychosocial aspects of patients seeking FGCS and suggests standardized practices that integrate psychological evaluation to address the underlying causes of the demand for such surgeries. It is an important perspective to be added to complement the established bias against women who choose to undergo elective vaginoplasty.