Introduction: The practice of hysterectomy in intellectually disabled individuals has raised a lot of controversy in both the medical fraternity and the general public. The request comes from the primary caregivers mostly parents in view of not being able to maintain menstrual hygiene and the fear of unwanted pregnancy. Materials & Methods: Twelve Indian mothers of daughters with intellectual disability were interviewed to study their perception regarding the hysterectomy for menstrual suppression. Results: Six mothers had considered hysterectomy due to difficulties related to menstrual cycle whereas another six had not thought about it and were either undecided or did not think it was appropriate. Conclusions: Half of the study population perceived hysterectomy as an option for menstrual cessation. This highlights that service providers should offer appropriate reproductive health education to primary caregivers about various options available for menstrual manipulation. Treatment policies should be clearly defined with the scope for tailoring individual needs.

Keywords: Hysterectomy; intellectually disabled; Indian mothers; perspective.