Does a broken hymen always bleed? Why do some women have a broken hymen and don’t know it? The hymen is a thin mucosal fold around the vaginal opening that contains connective tissue, blood vessels and nerve endings. Usually, the hymen is also perforated, in the shape of a circle or crescent, or in a few cases, a sieve or umbrella, which allows the woman to pass through it every time she has her period. Usually, a small amount of bleeding may occur when the hymen is broken. Generally speaking, the hymen is not particularly vascular and the hymen itself is relatively thin, so only a small amount of bleeding (usually around 5ml) will occur when it breaks. However, in a very small number of women, the hymen is thicker and more elastic, so when it ruptures, the amount of bleeding will be higher, but will not exceed the normal amount of menstruation. After the rupture of the hymen occurs, the bleeding will usually stop on its own by using a clean towel or gauze to compress the bleeding. At the same time, it is important to keep the vulva clean and hygienic to avoid inducing infection. It is also important to note that after bleeding, it is best for women to avoid having sex again for a week to avoid aggravating the tearing of the hymenal rupture. However, if the hymenal vessels are broken due to sexual intercourse, resulting in active bleeding, especially after a small arterial break, which often manifests as difficulty in stopping the bleeding after compression, immediate medical attention should be sought. If the hymen is broken and no bleeding occurs, this is normal. The amount and presence of bleeding after a hymenal breakage is related to the distribution of hymenal vessels, the depth of the laceration, and the coordination of male and female genital size. Due to individual differences, some women may only have blood in their leucorrhea after their hymen is broken, and some women may not bleed, which is mostly related to the lesser distribution of blood vessels in the hymen itself, or the lack of blood vessels when the hymen is broken. In addition, individual women, because of the large, thick and flexible hymen hole (such as umbrella hymen), may not rupture at all during the first sexual intercourse if the male partner uses gentle force, and no bleeding will occur. Even if the rupture occurs, if the hymen is less vascular, there may not be significant bleeding. A tip: When breaking the hymen, you can adopt the position of “the woman’s legs are bent upward and separated, and she holds her buttocks with her hands while she excludes her breath and presses downward”, which can reduce pain and bleeding. References: [1] Liu, Haimin. Hymenal repair [J]. [2] Liang Hui, Li Qin. First time sex” take it easy[J]. Popular Health, 2018(10):120-120.