Parents face so many difficult decisions when it comes to having a child: decisions about nursing, sleep patterns, discipline, teaching methods and, in the case of boys, whether or not to circumcise. In addition to being the most common surgery for males in the U.S., circumcision has been practiced in various cultures for centuries. Yet when it comes to the health and best interest of your newborn, is circumcision the way to go?
The principal risks of circumcision are hemorrhage, infection, and surgical accident leading to mutilation, such as penile amputation. Death may occur from loss of blood or from systemic infection.
As discussed in Argument 1, circumcision causes emotional issues for many men.
As discussed in Argument 2, circumcision always causes loss of the ridged band and results in degraded sexual function and pleasure.
The rate of complications is understated by most writers in English, but Patel (1966) studied 100 circumcisions prospectively (the most accurate type of study), followed the infants after discharge, and recorded 35 cases of bleeding, 8 cases of infection (one severe), meatal ulcers in 31, meatal stenosis in 8, and acquired phimosis in 1.
Griffiths et al. (1985) prospectively studied 140 boys aged 1 through 15 who were admitted for circumcision. The authors reported 46 cases of vomiting, 19 cases of delayed urination, and four cases of readmission to hospital to treat complications. The mean time of healing was 10.4 days.
Williams & Kapila (1993) report an incredible variety of complications, up to and including death. The incidence of death from circumcision related complications is unknown, because no on maintains a record of deaths from circumcision, however Gellis says there are more deaths from complications of circumcision than cancer of the penis, while Baker estimates 229 deaths a year from circumcision. Coroner’s reports show several circumcision deaths at the hands of medical practitioners, and, tragically, two deaths after ritual circumcision are a matter of record.
Newborn boys who have been circumcised have an open wound. They are at twelve-times greater risk of infection with life-threatening antibiotic-resistant CA-MRSA than intact boys. This is a new and emerging risk recently recognized by the CDC.
Non-therapeutic infant and child circumcision should not be performed because the injury is certain and the risks are severe and demonstrated. Boys should not be circumcised.
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