Abstract Background Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a traditional practice that involves either partial or total removal of female genital organs for non-medical reasons. Research evidence indicates that FGM has no health benefits, whereas the list of its detrimental impacts may be extensive. As a result of international efforts to put an end to the practice, the prevalence of FGM has decreased in many countries. Nevertheless, millions of girls and women remain affected. Aim To review evidence on the FGM-related health consequences and evaluate the effectiveness of anti-FGM awareness-raising interventions. Methods A critical narrative literature review approach is implemented to evaluate the outcomes of female circumcision, as well as the contexts and effects of interventions described in six empirical studies. Findings The review results demonstrated that FGM is associated with such adverse long-term health problems as urinary tract infections, sexual dysfunction, obstetric complications, and depression. The analysis of interventions revealed that multifaceted, community-based education and communication programs can lead to changes in attitudes to FGM and, thus, they can be regarded as promising preventative tools. Conclusion The findings indicate that to facilitate FGM prevention progress, interventions should be designed to fit specific community interests and needs. Future policy and research should focus on the realization of contextualized FGM prevention campaigns and the improvement of the healthcare system’s response to the needs of FGM victims. Introduction FGM, also known as female circumcision, puts at risk the health and welfare of millions of girls and women across the world. Over the years, global efforts to prevent FGM have significantly intensified, and the prevalence of this health condition has decreased in many countries (Kandala et al. 2018). Nevertheless, considering that millions of individuals continue to be affected (Kandala et al. 2018), there is a need to develop and implement effective and efficient strategies that would put the practice of FGM to an end. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to examine the health consequences of FGM and evaluate interventions that are currently used to prevent the practice and respond to the needs of its victims. The study is divided into four major sections: Background, Methodology, Critical Appraisal, and Discussion. The first one contains a brief overview of the main definitions of the selected problem, statistical data on the prevalence of female circumcision in different regions, existing international policies and prevention strategies, risk and preventative factors, and most common FGM interventions. The Methodology section covers the issues related to the design of the present study, the search strategy used to locate core sources for the literature review, data analysis tools, and ethical considerations. The Critical Appraisal provides an overview of the selected empirical studies following the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) framework and includes information on their aims, methods, major findings, and implications. Lastly, the Discussion section analyses the findings of the literature review in