Circumcision

Circumcision is the removal of some or all of the foreskin (prepuce). The frenulum may also be removed at the same time, in a procedure called frenectomy. The word circumcision comes from Latin circum (meaning "around") and caedere (meaning "to cut"). Female circumcision is a term applied to a variety of procedures performed on the female genitalia. Except where specified, "circumcision" in this article should be taken as "male circumcision". Some opponents of this practice use the term male genital mutilation (MGM).

Reasons for circumcision

Circumcision is performed for religious, cultural, and medical reasons. Elective adult circumcision may also be chosen as a form of body modification, or for aesthetic or other reasons.

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Religious and cultural circumcision

Circumcision is a religious practice traditionally required by Judaism, usually performed in a ceremony called a Brit milah or Bris Milah (Hebrew for "Covenant of circumcision"). The ceremony is to be performed on the eighth day after birth of the newborn boy unless health reasons force a delay. A trained professional, called a mohel, performs the ceremony. The first circumcision was said to have been conducted by the earliest Jewish settlers in what is modern day Syria, using very thin reeds of the papyrus plant in a practice adapted from an Egyptian method of skinning sugar cane. See also: Circumcision in the Bible.

Related Topics:
Judaism - Brit milah - Bris Milah - Hebrew - Mohel - Circumcision in the Bible

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Islam stresses cleanliness and considers circumcision a form of natural hygiene. Although circumcision is not mentioned in the Qur'an, it is mentioned in some parts of the Hadith. Fiqh scholars differ in their opinion about the compulsion of circumcision in Shariah, depending on which Hadith are accepted and how they are interpreted. According to Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Malik and a majority of others it is a recommended practice (Sunnah), while some scholars including Imam Shafi, consider it obligatory. Muslim custom on circumcision varies. Some Muslim communities perform circumcision on the eighth day of life, as the Jews do, while others perform the rite at a different time. Turkish, Balkan, and Central Asian Muslims typically circumcise boys at between six and eleven years of age, and the event is viewed communally as a joyous occasion and celebrated with sweets and feasting. In contrast, Iranian Muslims are typically circumcised in the hospital at birth without much ado. In Egypt, farmers in rural areas celebrate circumcision as a joyous occasion, while in urban populations, as in many industrialized countries such as the USA, the procedure is routinely performed at a hospital. Kamyar et al describe it as an 'obligatory custom', and note that it is not necessary for the circumciser to be a Muslim.http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/108/4/965

Related Topics:
Islam - Qur'an - Hadith - Fiqh - Shariah - Hadith - Imam Abu Hanifa - Imam Malik - Sunnah - Imam Shafi - Abraham - Balkan - Egypt - Industrialized

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Circumcision is also customary in the Coptic Christian and Ethiopian Orthodox religious traditions. It is usually performed on the eighth day of life. This practice was condemned by the Council of Florence http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06111a.htm in 1442, held by leading theologians of the Roman Catholic Church, which said in part:

Related Topics:
Coptic Christian - Ethiopian Orthodox - Council of Florence - 1442 - Roman Catholic Church

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:Therefore it strictly orders all who glory in the name of Christian, not to practise circumcision either before or after baptism, since whether or not they place their hope in it, it cannot possibly be observed without loss of eternal salvation. http://www.cirp.org/library/cultural/councilflorence/

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Circumcision is also common in a number of African and Australian Aboriginal religious traditions. Among some West African animist groups, such as the Dogon and Dowayo, it is taken to represent a removal of "feminine" aspects of the male, turning boys into fully masculine males. Among Nilotic peoples, such as the Nandi, circumcision is a rite of passage observed collectively by a number of boys every few years, and boys circumcised at the same time are taken to be members of a single age set. Aboriginal circumcision ceremonies, which also constitute a rite of passage, are noted for their painful nature, including subincision for some tribes.

Related Topics:
Dogon - Dowayo - Nilotic - Nandi - Age set - Subincision

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The United States, the Philippines and South Korea are the only countries that still practice circumcision routinely on a majority of males for non-religious reasons. Routine circumcision practices in South Korea are largely the result of American cultural and military influence following the Korean War. The origin of the practice in the Philippines is uncertain, according to one newspaper article http://www.cirp.org/news/sunstar03-21-05/. However, Antonio de Morga's "History of the Philippine Islands (1907) attributes circumcision to Islamic influence http://www.nalanda.nitc.ac.in/resources/english/etext-project/history/philippine/chapter11.html.

Related Topics:
United States - The Philippines - South Korea - Korean War

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Medical circumcision

Circumcision may be necessary to treat penile cancer http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/aboutcancer/specificcancers/penilecancer. It may also be recommended for phimosis (a very tight foreskin), or posthitis (an inflamed foreskin) thought there are other treatments for phimosis http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/321/7264/792 and balanitis http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/balanitis/edwards1/http://www.hkmj.org.hk/skin/balaniti.htmhttp://www.cirp.org/library/disease/balanitis/birley/, though these are not as successful in the case of balanitis xerotica obliterans http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=15852285&query_hl=1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=8179528&query_hl=3 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=12010594&query_hl=5. Circumcision may also be advised in cases of recurrent urinary tract infections http://www.emedicine.com/ped/topic1791.htm and Zoon's balanitis http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=6747077&dopt=Abstract.

Related Topics:
Penile cancer - Phimosis - Posthitis - Balanitis xerotica obliterans - Urinary tract infections - Balanitis

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A recent South African study found that circumcision may reduce the transmission of HIV (the virus that causes AIDS) by 63%http://www.ias-2005.org/planner/Abstracts.aspx?AID=2675. The study was terminated early so that circumcision could be offered to the control group. However, The Lancet, the most prestigious of all British medical journals, declined to publish the report. "At issue, Auvert and Puren told Science, is an ethical disagreement that involves how participants learned their HIV status and the counselling they received." The study was presented to an International AIDS Society conference in Brazil in July 2005. Some fear that if widespread circumcision is touted as an effective way to reduce HIV infection rates, people will develop a false sense of security and be more likely to engage in sexual intercourse without latex condoms, which would still carry significant risk if either partner has HIV or another sexually transmitted disease.

Related Topics:
HIV - AIDS - The Lancet - Brazil - 2005 - Condom - Sexually transmitted disease

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Several studies have shown that uncircumcised men are at greater risk of human papilloma virus (HPV) infection.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=11948269&query_hl=1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=16030106&query_hl=1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=7721284&query_hl=1 One study found no statistically significant difference between men with foreskins for HPV infection than those who are circumcised, but did note a significantly higher incidence of HPV lesions and urethritis http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=10444125&query_hl=5. Some strains of HPV are known to cause cervical cancer. Circumcised men are thought to be less likely to infect their partners. Further, many medical studies have found that being circumcised reduces a man's risk of developing penile cancer http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11196386&dopt=Abstract. However, some of these studies compare different cultures that may have other reasons for disparate cancer rates, such as a genetic predisposition or dietary differences.

Related Topics:
Human papilloma virus - Cervical cancer - Penile cancer

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Recommending circumcision for infants as a preventative measure is controversial. No national medical body recommends routine infant circumcision. While some argue that circumcision is a significant public health measure, others assert that there are no net benefits to the procedure, or that the drawbacks outweigh the benefits and others discourage the procedure altogether. The American Academy of Pediatrics argues that parents should make an informed decision based upon medical and other benefits and riskshttp://aappolicy.aappublications.org/cgi/content/full/pediatrics;103/3/686. For a detailed discussion, see medical analysis of circumcision.

Related Topics:
American Academy of Pediatrics - Medical analysis of circumcision

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Circumcision and body modification

Circumcision may be undertaken voluntarily as a body modification. (See also foreskin restoration).

Related Topics:
Body modification - Foreskin restoration

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