Benefits Include Reduced Risk of HIV

The divorced parents of an 8-year-old boy are fighting in a suburban Chicago court over whether the child should be circumcised.  The child suffers from recurring painful inflammation and can only wear loose-fitting pajamas.  The father, who was granted the right to participate in the child's medical decisions as part of the divorce decree, feels the operation is unnecessary and will cause his child long-term physical and psychological harm. 

The case is part of a national debate over the pros and cons of circumcision.  Although circumcision is important in Judaism and several other religions, it is not normally medically necessary, although it can be recommended in cases of recurring inflammation or infection.  The father in the Chicago case claims that his feelings about the religious implications of circumsion are not a factor in his objections.

The American Academy of Pediatrics no longer supports routine circumcision for babies, due to medical evidence that circumcised men have less penile sensitivity, although circumcised men have lower rates of urinary tract infections.  Routine circumcision rates have fallen from about 90 percent in 1970 to about 60 percent today.  About 1.2 million baby boys are circumcised every year, at an annual cost estimated between $150 million and $270 million.  Medicaid programs in sixteen states no longer reimburse for the procedure, calling it unnecessary.

French and South African Researchers Find Circumcision Reduces Risk of HIV

A controversial study conducted in South Africa demonstrated that circumcision can cut HIV infection rates by as much as 60 percent.  Although many studies have shown a relationship between existing circumcision and lower HIV rates, this is the first study that has used circumcision as an active intervention in the battle against the epidemic. 

Circumcision can be risky in the Third World, where lack of training and the risk of dirty tools could expose men to more infections.  Researchers also fear the "disinhibition" factor, which would lead circumcised men to engage in more risky behavior than might have been expected without the procedure.  However, even small reductions in the world-wide incidence of HIV could save hundreds of thousands of lives each year.

The study was published in the journal PLos Medicine, amid a storm of controversy over ethical issues of informed consent involved in the study. 

For more information on the Chicago case, go to the MSNBC report at:  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13337203/from/ET/ . For more information on how circumcision affects the HIV rate, go to the MSNBC report at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9806505/site/newsweek/from/ET/