Circumcision Benefits Outweigh Risks

The American Academy of Pediatrics has offered a new outlook toward infant circumcision, a procedure that has been declining nationwide.  The new study claims that the health benefits of infant circumcision outweigh the risks of surgery.

Researchers state that the procedure of circumcision reduces chances of urinary infections, penile cancer, and also protects heterosexual men against sexually transmitted infections such as HIV.

 According to a statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) published in Pediatrics, parents must "weigh medical information in the context of their own religious, ethical, and cultural beliefs and practices. Although the health benefits are not great enough to recommend routine circumcision for all male newborns, the benefits of circumcision are sufficient to justify access to this procedure for families choosing it, and to warrant third-party payment for circumcision of male newborns."

The AAP reconsiders its policy on a regular basis. The 1999 guidelines were confirmed in 2005, which focused on the health benefits of having the foreskin of the penis removed.

Dr. Douglas Diekema, a pediatric emergency specialist and bioethicist at Seattle Children's Hospital who was a member of the task force, was quoted by the Los Angeles Times as saying, "During the most recent review it became pretty clear that there had been a lot of scientific literature that had not been reflected in 1999, and it was time for a revision."

In order to throw more light on this finding, the team evaluated more than 1031 articles between 1995 and 2010. The study dealt with various aspects of male circumcision, counting the health benefits, weighing the pros and cons, cultural and religious influences and effects on sexual function.

The new study focused more on the health benefits. Researchers had also conducted controlled trials from Africa and proved that circumcision reduced men's risk of contracting HIV.

"The task force has failed to consider the large body of evidence from the developed world that shows no medical benefits for the practice, and has given short shrift, if not dismissed out of hand, the serious ethical problems inherent in doctors removing healthy body parts from children who cannot consent," said Georganne Chapin, the group's executive director, to Reuters.

The American congress of obstetricians and gynaecologists, along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), participated in the research review. According to CDC, the number of circumcision has fallen out of favor with American parents over the last few decades. The number dropped from about 80 percent in the 1970s and 1980s to below 55 percent in 2010.

According to The New York Times, "Other studies have linked male circumcision to lower rates of infection with human papillomavirus and herpes simplex Type 2. But male circumcision is not associated with lower rates of gonorrhea or chlamydia, and evidence for protection against syphilis is weak."

Dr. Aaron Tobian, a Johns Hopkins University assistant professor who co-authored the study said to The Washington Post, "The academy's updated policy is a very good step."