Al-Marsad Newspaper: Writer Dr. Badr bin Saud confirmed that the Saudi marriage exam has not changed since its approval more than 18 years ago, although the Kingdom’s endemic genetic diseases vary in different regions and most prevalent, according to specialists, is mental retardation, genetic retinopathy and metabolic diseases, as well as For nearly a hundred hereditary diseases, it is believed that most of them exist locally and that premarital examination requires a complementary set of necessary medical examinations, which it is helpful in reducing divorce rates.
The marriage exam needs to be reconsidered
Explaining in his article published today in the Al-Riyadh newspaper titled “Marriage Examination Must Be Reconsidered” on October 24, Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al-Sheikh spoke important words about the rise in divorce cases in the Kingdom, and considered it a dangerous indicator aimed at the security of society and leading to the loss of the family Following the separation of parents, and statistics aligned with what was stated by His Eminence, indicated that in the period between 2020 and 2021, some Arab countries have registered 7 divorce cases for every 10 marriages, and that most of them occur in the first and second year of marriage, and the writer believes that the treatment begins with a list of procedural solutions, in particular: broaden the circle of the examination of marriage outside the circle of the Big Four, which is limited to two genetic diseases, sickle cell anemia and thalassemia, and with them and infectious diseases, hepatitis and AIDS.
The writer also added that there are about seven thousand genetic diseases worldwide, and each person carries five to ten genetic diseases in his genes, and is similar to his relatives for 6% of these diseases, and the higher the degree of kinship, the higher the rate of infection of his offspring with it, including It does not exceed 25%, and marriage outside the family does not mean staying away from genetic diseases, since there are genetic mutations that are transmitted to children in more distant marriages, and therefore the question is not regulated by a fixed rule, apart from the fact that the examination did not lead to the required results. Two separate Saudi studies confirmed test takers, one of which was conducted between 2004 and 2006 and the other in 2015, that 90% in the first and 40% in the second did not shy away from completing the marriage, for emotional or social reasons, despite full awareness of the existence of a common genetic disease that can be passed on to one’s children.
Fertility test
He stressed the need to include a fertility or reproductive capacity test for both men and women, as part of the Saudi prenuptial exam, to avoid the possibility that one of them is infertile and divorce, or that a party cheating and deceiving the other, and which are among the legitimate obligations for the annulment of the marriage contract, except in the case of revelation and acceptance. The evidence reveals many things, the most important of which is the examination of the integrity of the reproductive glands of the man, and making sure that his sperm is alive, healthy and unbound, and the latter happens if the man does not want to have children from his new wife, and as for the woman, the test shows the presence of the uterus or not, and cysts. Or abnormalities in the ovaries and the ability of the menstrual cycle to produce eggs, and one of the common factors between the sexes in poor reproduction and infertility, smoking and frequent sexual infections following illegal relationships, found that 20% of Saudi marriages suffer from pregnancy and one in five marriages.
Performing a clinical examination
He added that what is also missing from the marriage examination, and in the opinion of specialists, is to conduct a clinical examination on marriage candidates to make sure that they do not suffer from physical or psychological ailments, and that the latter is important, given that diseases such as bipolar depression, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive disorder and suspected disorders have genetic causes in most cases, even if their onset is delayed beyond twenty, and these diseases continue with the person for life and medications relieve only 40% of their symptoms, and the most difficult thing is that they can lead the patient to commit crimes against his family and others and to abuse drugs, and his involvement in terrorist or disruptive organizations is not excluded, and perhaps the wife has moved out or
Marriage Exam Expansion
He concluded his article that the Saudi Ministry of Health now has a complete electronic record for every patient in the country, and what is missing is to expand the marriage examination to include the previous additions and coordinate with the Ministry of Education to take samples. of blood from public and private school students, and to detect genetic diseases in them, then deposit them in a huge bank with a secret number known only to the owner of the sample, and during the marriage examination, the samples are referenced to ensure the compatibility of the two parties to marriage and who are disease-free, while connecting the register to the Ministries of Justice and the Interior for the examination of the criminal record, the functional and social status and the cases of drug abuse proven on both parts, so that they are informed It is done once, and under the supervision of a specialist and in a neutral and safe place, and the above will not be included in The premarital examination, except by urgent government decision by the authorized person, and in a way that brings about the health and safety of society and the institution that is its first component The marriage license is issued after qualifying and prepared those who are about to marry to fulfill their responsibilities.
