Circumcision of male infants and children as a public health measure in developed countries: A critical assessment of recent evidence

Morten Frisch, Brian D Earp

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningpeer review

37 Citationer (Scopus)
388 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

In December of 2014, an anonymous working group under the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a draft of the first-ever federal recommendations regarding male circumcision. In accordance with the American Academy of Pediatrics' circumcision policy from 2012 - but in contrast to the more recent 2015 policy from the Canadian Paediatric Society as well as prior policies (still in force) from medical associations in Europe and Australasia - the CDC suggested that the benefits of the surgery outweigh the risks. In this article, we provide a brief scientific and conceptual analysis of the CDC's assessment of benefit versus risk, and argue that it deserves a closer look. Although we set aside the burgeoning bioethical debate surrounding the moral permissibility of performing non-therapeutic circumcisions on healthy minors, we argue that, from a scientific and medical perspective, current evidence suggests that such circumcision is not an appropriate public health measure for developed countries such as the United States.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
TidsskriftGlobal Public Health
Vol/bind13
Udgave nummer5
Sider (fra-til)626-641
ISSN1744-1692
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2018

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