Male Circumcision Essay

INTRODUCTION

Male circumcision (MC) can be defined as surgical removal of foreskin from penis. It has been practiced for more than 3000 years in the Middle East and for more than 5000 years in Africa. Nowadays, it is estimated that 30% of men are circumcised globally, with the majority of them coming from the Muslim countries. Circumcision is usually performed for religious reasons, while its non-religious reasons include medical, social and cultural ones. Male circumcision has been proven to have protective effect against many medical conditions, such as, penile carcinoma, infections of the urinary tract, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and other sexually transmitted diseases (Moses et al., 1998). Statistically, HIV is one of the major

For instance, three randomized trials were done in sub-Saharan Africa to evaluate the protective effect of MC against HIV. All three trials revealed that MC resulted in lower incidence of HIV infection. The first trial was conducted in 2005 in South Africa, where 3000 men between 18 and 24 were included in the study resulting with 60% less HIV infection (Auvert et al., 2005). The second controlled trial in Kisumu, Kenya, also helped to discover that MC reduces the risk of HIV for 60% (Bailey et al., 2007). In turn, 51% reduction of HIV infection risk was achieved after the third controlled trial in Uganda’s Rakai District (Ronald H Gray,

However, similarly to other surgical procedures, it can make a negative impact, both physical and financial, unless done properly. Male circumcision does not provide complete protection against HIV; therefore, it should be promoted along with other preventive measures. Additional factors like availability of the right resources; acceptability of male circumcision among different cultures, professional medical services, and counseling should be also taken into consideration when promoting male