CHICAGO, Aug 27: The American Academy of Pediatrics has issued new guidelines saying the health benefits of infant circumcision outweigh the risks of the surgery, but the influential physician’s group has fallen short of a universal recommendation of the procedure for all infants, saying that parents should make the final call.
The change was prompted by scientific evidence that suggests circumcision can reduce the risk of urinary tract infections in infants and cut the risk of penile cancer and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV and the human papillomavirus or HPV, which causes cervical and other cancers.
Although the AAP’s 1999 statement was fairly neutral, the new statement, published on Monday in the journal Pediatrics, comes down in favor of the procedure, saying the health benefits of newborn male circumcision “justify access to this procedure for families who choose it.”
“We’re not saying you have to have it,” said Dr. Andrew Freedman, a pediatric urologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles who chaired the AAP’s circumcision task force.
“We’re saying if a family thinks it is in the child’s best interests, the benefits are enough to help them do that,” he said.
Based on a review of more than 1,000 scientific articles, the task force said male circumcision does not appear to adversely affect penile sexual function, sensitivity of the penis or sexual satisfaction.
The AAP said parents should be given unbiased information about the procedure and be allowed to make the call on their own.
But the group did say it is imperative that those performing circumcision are adequately trained, that they use sterile techniques and offer effective pain management.
GROWING DEBATE
Circumcision, the surgical removal of the foreskin of the penis, is a ritual obligation for infant Jewish boys, and is also a common rite among Muslims, who account for the largest share of circumcised men worldwide.
The wider US population adopted the practice due to potential health benefits, but those advantages have become the subject of debate, including recent efforts to ban circumcision in San Francisco and Germany. (agencies)
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