SOS circumcision 9 short

Male Circumcision:
Facts, Myths, Racism
by
David Stodolsky, PhD
Institute for Social Informatics
Copenhagen, Denmark
[email protected]
Contents
Scientific Overview ................................................................................................................................................... 4
Observational studies ............................................................................................................................................. 5
Randomized controlled trials ................................................................................................................................. 6
Health and economic effects of male circumcision ............................................................................................... 7
Risks in Infants ....................................................................................................................................................... 9
Male sexual satisfaction after circumcision ......................................................................................................... 11
Female sexual satisfaction after circumcision ...................................................................................................... 12
Status of male circumcision under human rights law .......................................................................................... 13
International health organizations ........................................................................................................................ 15
Myths ...................................................................................................................................................................... 16
Organizations: ...................................................................................................................................................... 17
Seksualitet og Sundhed ..................................................................................................................................... 20
"European doctors" on male circumcision ........................................................................................................... 25
Intactivists ........................................................................................................................................................... 28
Intaction anti-circumcision activists picket home of leading pediatrician ........................................................ 31
President Clinton’s event disrupted by Intaction protesters .............................................................................. 32
"Right to bodily integrity" is not a valid objection to newborn male circumcision.! ........................................... 33
How Circumcision Broke the Internet ................................................................................................................. 35
Racist!impact!of the campaign ................................................................................................................................ 37
Cartoons promoting racism .................................................................................................................................. 38
Proposed legislation impacts Muslims ................................................................................................................. 43
Promoting sexual dysfunction and discrimination .................................................................................................. 44
Increase in death rates ............................................................................................................................................. 45
http://www.circlist.com/history/art.html
Circumcision has been practiced in many parts of the world for thousands of years.
One-third of all men worldwide are circumcised.
There are no legal bans on male circumcision.
Scientific Overview
Scientific Overview
Observational studies
Randomized controlled trials
Health and economic effects of male circumcision
Risks in Infants
Male sexual satisfaction after circumcision
Female sexual satisfaction after circumcision
Status of male circumcision under human rights law
International health organizations
Observational studies
Observational data collected since 1986 suggested male
circumcision (MC) reduced HIV infection among men. Here is an
example of this kind of data:
Han hæfter sig ved, at hiv er knapt så udbredt i det vestlige Afrika,
hvor omskæring er en ofte brugt kulturel praksis. I Østafrika
derimod, epicenteret for Afrikas hiv-katastrofe, bliver omskæring
kun sjældent foretaget.
http://www.religion.dk/artikel/247897:Undervisning--Omskaering-mindsker-aids-risiko
A systematic review and meta-analysis found that in sub-Saharan
Africa MC is associated with a significantly reduced risk of HIV
infection among men, with an adjusted relative risk of 0.42 (95%
CI: 0.34–0.54)
http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pmed.0020298
Randomized controlled trials
Eventually, there was enough data to justify three randomized controlled
trials—considered the gold standard of scientific research—of more than
10,000 HIV-negative uncircumcised men in Kenya, Uganda, and South
Africa.
Conclusion: Men’s risk of HIV was reduced by about 60 percent.
http://www.poz.com/articles/circumcision_debate_2801_24568.shtml
In Kenya 22 men in the intervention group and 47 in the control group had
tested positive for HIV when the study was stopped.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17321310
The researchers found that the effect of circumcision in protecting against
HIV was so strong that they couldn't ethically continue to withhold
circumcision from the control group, but rather stopped the study and gave
circumcision to the control group. This was true in all three studies.
Health and economic effects of male circumcision
Newborn Male Circumcision
After a comprehensive review of the scientific evidence, the American
Academy of Pediatrics found the health benefits of newborn male
circumcision outweigh the risks, but the benefits are not great enough to
recommend universal newborn circumcision. (The American College of
Obstetricians and Gynecologists has endorsed this statement.)
http://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/pages/Newborn-Male-Circumcision.aspx
Susan Blank (Chair of the Task Force of the American Academy of Pediatrics):
"The health benefits of male circumcision include
a drop in the risk of urinary tract infection in the first year of life by up to 90
per cent,
it drops the risk of heterosexual HIV acquisition by about 60 per cent,
drops the risk of human papilloma virus and herpes virus,
drops the risk of other infectious genital ulcers."
Professor Morris [from Australia] says getting boys circumcised has a whole range of benefits, including providing
some protection from sexually transmitted infections:
"Uncircumcised penis contains receptors on the very vulnerable inner mucosa,
that's the inside of the foreskin and there is plenty of biological evidence as
well as the epidemiology that supports that. So, it has the receptors on the
inner lining of the foreskin, they've been shown through biological
experiments to have receptors that take up HIV, lots of other mechanisms too.
It's more prone to inflammation which weakens the lining and allows the virus
in, it's more prone to tearing during sexual intercourse and then direct entry
into the bloodstream."
http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2013/09/18/should-australian-boys-be-circumcised
Circumcision reduces the acquisition of HIV by heterosexual men by between
38% and 66% over 24 months. Incidence of adverse events is very low,
indicating that male circumcision, when conducted under these conditions, is a
safe procedure.
Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2009 Apr 15;(2):CD003362. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD003362.pub2.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19370585
Risks in Infants
One large study, conducted in US Army hospitals from 1980
to 1985, found that for 100,157 boys who were circumcised
in the first month of life, there were 193 complications
(0.19%). These included 62 local infections, 83 instances of!
hemorrhage (31 requiring ligatures and 3 requiring
transfusion), 25 instances of surgical trauma, 20 urinary
tract infections (compared with 88 UTIs in the 35,929 boys
in this study who had not been circumcised), and 8 cases of
bacteremia (compared with 32 in the uncircumcised).
There were no deaths or reported losses of the glans or entire
penis. However, in the uncircumcised boys, 3 developed
meningitis, 2 got renal failure and 2 died.
http://www.circinfo.net/risks_of_circumcision.html
Kacker et al. [Johns Hopkins University] conclude that reduction of the United States male
circumcision rate from 55% to 10% will increase lifetime health care costs by $407 per male and $43
per female.
Over 10 annual cohorts, net present value of additional costs would exceed $4.4 billion.
Lifetime prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus infection among males is expected to increase
by 12.2% (4843 cases)
high- and low-risk human papillomavirus by 29.1% (57 124 cases)
herpes simplex virus type 2 by 19.8% (124 767 cases)
infant urinary tract infections by 211.8% (26 876 cases).
Among females, lifetime prevalence of
bacterial vaginosis is expected to increase by 51.2% (538 865 cases)
trichomoniasis by 51.2% (64 585 cases)
high-risk human papillomavirus by 18.3% (33 148 cases)
and low-risk human papillomavirus by 12.9% (25 837 cases)
Costs and Effectiveness of Neonatal Male Circumcision
Seema Kacker, BS; Kevin D. Frick, PhD; Charlotte A. Gaydos, DrPH; Aaron A. R. Tobian, MD, PhD
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2012;166(10):910-918. doi:10.1001/archpediatrics.2012.1440.
http://www.jamapeds.com/data/Journals/PEDS/24999/poa120049_910_918.pdf
http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/Medicine/std/downloads/Neonatal_Male_Circumcision_AIDS2012.pdf
Why would circumcision decrease a man's risk of contracting AIDS?
http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/life/cellular-microscopic/circum-aids.htm
Male sexual satisfaction after circumcision
Compared to before they were circumcised, 64.0% of
circumcised men reported their penis was "much more
sensitive," and 54.5% rated their ease of reaching orgasm as
"much more" at month 24.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18761593
Does Male Circumcision Affect Sexual Function, Sensitivity,
or Satisfaction?-A Systematic Review.
Circumcision had no overall adverse effect on penile
sensitivity, sexual arousal, sexual sensation, erectile function,
premature ejaculation, ejaculatory latency, orgasm
difficulties, sexual satisfaction, pleasure, or pain during
penetration.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23937309
Female sexual satisfaction after circumcision
No change (57%) or an improvement (40%) in
sexual satisfaction after their male partner had
been circumcised
A survey of US women found 82% preferred
the circumcised penis for fellatio, with only
2% preferring the uncircumcised penis
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3359221/
Partners [of circumcised men] were also more
likely to initiate sex with them.
http://www.circinfo.net/circumcision_sensitivity_sensation_sexual_function.html
Status of male circumcision under human rights law
"To sum up, a complete prohibition on ritual male circumcision, as opposed
to regulation, would infringe on children's, as well as parents' religious
freedom under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child as
well as the European Convention on Fundamental Rights and Freedoms.
This is the conclusion that Swedish and Finnish legislators have reached as
opposed to organizations such as representatives of the Swedish Pediatric
Surgery Association and Swedish Save the Children."
Oddly, the non-medically trained invoked medical arguments for their
positions and the medically trained invoked religious and legal arguments.
Johanna Schiratzki
Banning God’s Law in the Name of the Holy Body - The Nordic Position on Ritual Male Circumcision
http://din-online.info/pdf/fam5-3.pdf
Great confidence in areas where one has little or no knowledge is the well known Dunning-Kruger effect. The less people know, the more confident they are about
their conclusions. [Kruger, J. & Dunning, D. (1999). Unskilled and Unaware of It: How Difficulties in Recognizing One's Own Incompetence Lead to Inflated SelfAssessments. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77, 1121-1134.]
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) 44/ 25 20
November 1989 held at Article 14 (2), “States Parties shall respect the rights and duties
of the parents and, when applicable legal guardians, to provide direction to the child in
the exercise of his or her right in a matter consistent with the evolving capacities of the
child”
“male infant circumcision falls within the prerogative of parental decision- making in the
secular case and even more clearly in the religious case” [41]. In a landmark review in
2004 Alanis and Lucidi point out that, “Although the issue of informed consent promises
to be at the forefront of any ethical-legal debate on circumcision, it is notable that a
parent or legal guardian is bound to make countless other decisions for their growing
child over the years until they are legally considered adults, many of which will likely
have a more profound effect on them than the presence or absence of a foreskin”[44].
Article 24 (1) of the UNCRC calls upon parties to the agreement to, “recognize the right
of the child to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health and to facilities
for the treatment of illness and rehabilitation of health. States Parties shall strive to
ensure that no child is deprived of his or her right of access to such health care services”.
http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2431/13/136
International health organizations
UNAIDS, WHO, UNICEF, UNFPA, and the World Bank sponsored a
2008 conference promoting male circumcision at the Red Cross building
in Copenhagen.
Funding male circumcision:
:The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
:U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
:The Clinton Foundation
:Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (planning, coordination, technical
support)
Goal:
80 percent circumcision prevalence among 15- to 49-year-old males in
the priority countries by the end of 2016. (20 million circumcisions)
Myths
Myths
Organizations:
Seksualitet og Sundhed
"European doctors" on male circumcision
Intactivists
Intaction anti-circumcision activists picket
President Clinton’s event disrupted
"Right to bodily integrity" not a valid objection
How Circumcision Broke the Internet
Organizations:
Swedish Save the Children
Position: Ban ritual circumcision
Statements:
urging Jews and Muslims to "change their religion"
having one’s child ritually circumcised constitutes "torture"
Danish Save the Children
Supports a ban
Det Etiske Råd
No medical indication (circumcision = tatoo), therefore
delay circumcision until 18 years of age.
(Based upon the assumption that there is no medical benefit at all.)
Lægeforeningen
Fordelene ved mandlig omskæring er for en stor del
udokumenterede. Nogle studier peger på en reduceret
smitterisiko i forhold til enkelte seksuelt overførte sygdomme.
.
.
.
Lægeforeningen finder det bedst stemmende overens med
individets ret til selvbestemmelse (autonomi), at beslutningen om
foretagelse af omskæring overlades til barnet, når det har nået
myndighedsalderen. Dog anbefaler Lægeforeningen ikke et
forbud, da det kan føre til uautoriseret foretagelse af indgrebet.
Sex og Samfund
opfordrer til at omskæring af nyfødte drenge bliver gjort
ulovlig. Dette vil faktisk overskride børnenes
menneskerettigheder.
Desuden undlader Sex og Samfund at gøre opmærksom på
gavnlige virkninger af omskæring af nyfødte drenge. Dette
fremmer sygdom og seksuel dysfunktion. Derudover
stigmatiserer Sex og Samfund minoriteter.
"Sex & Samfund mener, at rituel drengeomskæring bør
sidestilles juridisk med rituel
pigeomskæring, idet der i begge tilfælde er tale om fjernelse
af vitalt væv fra raske børn."
http://www.sexogsamfund.dk/Files/Filer/Sex%20og%20Samfund/Sex_&_Samfunds_holdning_vedr%C3%B8rende_drengeomsk%C3%A6ring.pdf
Seksualitet og Sundhed
Arbejdsgruppens Medlemmer:
Adjungeret professor, overlæge Morten Frisch (formand for arbejdsgruppen)
Professor, overlæge, dr.med. Bente Klarlund Pedersen (medlem af Vidensråd for Forebyggelse)
Læge, ph.d. Christian Graugaard
"Et nyere dansk studie tyder desuden på, at også
mandlig omskæring – som forekommer hos ca.
5 % af mandebefolkningen – er forbundet med
øget forekomst af orgasmeproblemer hos manden
selv samt hyppigere seksuelle funktionsproblemer
og manglende seksuel behovsdækning hos deres
kvindelige partnere."
http://www.vidensraad.dk/sites/default/files/rapporten_seksualitet_og_sundhed.pdf
The reference:
Frisch M, Lindholm M, Grønbæk M.
Male circumcision and sexual function in men and women: a survey-based, cross-sectional study in Denmark.
int J epidemiol 2011; 40: 1367-81.
The Report does not include any other studies on this issue, even
though Frisch states:
"Novel findings ... suggest, but by no means prove, the existence of
non-trivial associations of male circumcision with frequent orgasm
difficulties in men and with a range of frequent sexual difficulties in
women, including orgasm difficulties, dyspareunia and a sense of
incomplete sexual needs fulfilment (sic). "
http://ije.oxfordjournals.org/content/early/2011/11/27/ije.dyr181
»Det viser sig, at kvinder med omskårne mænd oplever dobbelt så
stor risiko for, at deres seksuelle behov ikke bliver opfyldt. De
oplever tre gange så stor risiko for hyppigt besvær med at opnå
orgasme. Og otte gange forøget risiko for smerter ved samleje –
såkaldt dyspareuni,« siger Morten Frisch.
http://videnskab.dk/krop-sundhed/omskaering-af-maend-giver-darligt-sexliv
Frisch states:
"Langt de fleste omskårne mænd, der deltog i undersøgelsen, var
omskåret efter en lægefaglig vurdering."
http://videnskab.dk/krop-sundhed/omskaering-af-maend-giver-darligt-sexliv
Therefore, one interpretation of the results could be, "Men
requiring operations on their sexual organ reported sexual
difficulties." Applying this to circumcision of healthy newborns is
misleading.
First, the risk of complications is much less in newborns than
adults.
Second, these adults had diseases necessitating circumcision, which
may have contributed to difficulties independent of the operation.
Removal of tissue in men requiring circumcision for medical
conditions in Denmark is typically partial, making comparisons
with newborn circumcision inappropriate, since that is complete.
Some newly circumcised men are "shy" about the appearance of
their penis and this may itself lead to difficulties.
Finally, men with a redundant prepuce or with phimosis -narrowing
of the opening of the foreskin- !tend to have poorer mental health,
which could be an independent source of difficulties.
The results of this study have also been interpreted as support for
newborn circumcision. That is, if these men had been circumcised
as newborns, it is likely that their treatment as adults would have
been avoided.
It has been suggested that in a country where 95% of men are
uncircumcised, a circumcised penis may be perceived to be
abnormal and the psychological effect of this perception could be
responsible for some of the reports of negative experiences by
women
Since the Report is likely to reduce the rate of circumcision in
Denmark, disease and healthcare costs are expected to rise.
A "mechanism of action":
"The theory promoted by Dr. Frisch says that the amputated
missing foreskin, results in the a thin layer of tough skin
developing on the penis, which means that he has to 'work harder'
in order to reach orgasm during sexual intercourse."
http://blog.balder.org/?p=1268
"European doctors" on male circumcision
CIRCUMCISION POLICY UNDER FIRE
EUROPEAN DOCTORS DENOUNCE AAP POSITION
Cultural Bias in the AAP’s 2012 Technical Report and
Policy Statement on Male Circumcision
Doctors from 16 European!countries!denounce the
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) 2012
Circumcision Policy Statement.
"Circumcision conflicts with children’s rights and
doctors’ oath and can have serious long-term
consequences."
http://intaction.org/circumcision-policy-denounced/
Cultural Bias and Circumcision: The AAP Task Force on Circumcision Responds
The central claim of these authors is that the conclusions of the task force report are culturally biased,
leading the task force to a flawed understanding of what constitutes trustworthy evidence and to
conclusions that are far from those reached by physicians in most other Western countries. The
“obvious”cultural bias to which they refer apparently has its genesis in “the normality of nontherapeutic male circumcision in the US.” All of the commentary authors hail from Europe, where
the vast majority of men are uncircumcised and the cultural norm clearly favors the uncircumcised
penis. In contrast, approximately half of US males are circumcised, and half are not. Although
that heterogeneity may lead to a more tolerant view toward circumcision in the United States than in
Europe, the cultural “bias” in the United States is much more likely to be a neutral one than that found
in Europe, where there is a clear bias against circumcision. Yet, the commentary’s authors have, at no
point, recognized that their own cultural bias may exist in equal, if not greater, measure than any
cultural bias that might exist among the members of the AAP Task Force on Circumcision. If cultural
bias influences the review of available evidence, then a culture that is comfortable with both the
circumcised penis and the uncircumcised penis would seem predisposed to a more dispassionate
analysis of the scientific literature than a culture with a bias that is either strongly opposed to
circumcision or strongly in favor of it.
All claims by Frisch et al are shown to be false. The article
"Cultural Bias in the AAP’s 2012 Technical Report and Policy Statement on Male Circumcision" is a
propaganda piece and will be subject to a complaint about scientific misconduct.
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/131/4/801.full?sid=bd87fd82-0f2d-401e-b572-8653dfee9835
The early Christian church struggled over whether or not
circumcision should be a requirement. The debate is
chronicled in the Acts of the!Apostles and various epistles,
but was never really resolved. In the end, the Coptic church
kept, and still keeps, circumcision as a religious requirement.
The!Orthodox church in Eastern Europe is strongly opposed
to it (possibly more to distinguish themselves from their
Muslim neighbors than on theological!grounds),!and the
Catholic church is distinctly ambivalent, over the centuries
sometimes condemning it (on theological grounds) but at
other times favoring it (on hygienic!grounds, the idea being
that good health and hygiene helped to keep boys free from
sin).
Guy Cox and Brian J. Morris.!Why Circumcision: From Prehistory to the Twenty-First Century.
D.A. Bolnick et al. (eds.), Surgical Guide to Circumcision, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4471-2858-8_21, © Springer-Verlag London 2012
Intactivists
Finally, we review the material disseminated by "Intactivists:"
We believe everyone is harmed by circumcision, including
babies & men, mothers & women, doctors & nurses.
• Circumcision harms babies due to the trauma.
• Circumcision harms men due to the trauma, loss of genital
autonomy and loss of anatomically functional tissue.
• Circumcision affects mothers when they must endure the
lifelong grief stemming from the realization of having
harmed their child.
• Circumcision affects women due to the loss of sexual
function from their partners.
• Circumcision affects doctors & medical staff because
many are forced to perform this harmful act to babies
against their conscience.http://intaction.org/about-us/
http://intaction.org/circumcision-i-did-not-consent-petition/
"March with Intaction's Genital Integrity Army to the home of Dr.
Susan Blank, head of the AAP 2012 Circumcision Policy
Committee. We will protest in front of her house to let her, her
family, her neighbors, and other NYC residents know about her
lack of ethics and concern for the rights of baby boys. We need to
hold these doctors personally responsible for their actions. …….."
http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=7665a41a3aee8590f02f996fc&id=eb47825027&e=b43e04c560
INTACTION ANTI-CIRCUMCISION
ACTIVISTS PICKET HOME OF
LEADING PEDIATRICIAN
http://intaction.org/intaction-anti-circumcision-activists-picket-home-of-leading-pediatrician/
PRESIDENT CLINTON’S EVENT DISRUPTED BY INTACTION PROTESTERS
During the Clinton Foundation Millennium
Network event featuring a dialogue with
President Bill Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, and
Hollywood actor Ed Norton, protesters from
the human rights organization
INTACTION!disrupted the show to protest
the exploitative and racist health policies
involving the!circumcision!of African men.
http://intaction.org/president-clintons-event-disrupted-by-anti-circumcision-activists/
"Right to bodily integrity" is not a valid objection to newborn male circumcision.
the choice the parents face is markedly different from the choice
the child would face were he to wait until he reached majority to
have the operation.
The dangers of medical complications,
the anticipatory dread,
the disruption to life, and the
unease relating to a change in what one is used to
are all much greater when one is circumcised at 18 as opposed to
infancy.
Since the child is not currently autonomous, and since we cannot
provide the child with (even roughly) the same choice facing the
parents once he attains majority, it is a mistake to argue that the
child has a right to self-determination that is being violated here."
http://jme.bmj.com/content/39/7/421.abstract
appeals to the rights of bodily integrity and
self-determination (understood as trumps) in
the context of the circumcision debate entails a
misunderstanding of the nature of these rights.
http://jme.bmj.com/content/39/7/432.extract
Infant circumcision is safe, simple, convenient
and cost-effective. The available evidence
strongly supports infancy as the optimal time
for circumcision.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3359221/
How Circumcision Broke the Internet
A fringe group is drowning out any discussion of
facts.
<http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/medical_examiner/2013/09/
intactivists_online_a_fringe_group_turned_the_internet_against_circumcision.html>
The part where Frisch states that urinary tract
infections are reduced seems to have disappeared.
Minute 29.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diqcs0D7jpk
Exaggeration of intervention risks and
minimization of disease prevention effects by
opponents confuses the public.
The AAP Task Force on Neonatal
Circumcision: a call for respectful dialogue
However, the Task Force also feels strongly that
this debate and the academic literature are
demeaned when those with an ideological agenda
disseminate inaccurate information, misapply
scientific principles, make accusations that are
unsupported, communicate in a vitriolic tone, and
attempt to discredit and mischaracterise
alternative views and those who hold them.
http://jme.bmj.com/content/39/7/442
Racist impact of the campaign
Racist!impact!of the campaign
Racist!impact!of the campaign
Cartoons promoting racism
Proposed legislation impacts Muslims
Promoting sexual dysfunction and discrimination
Increase in death rates
Cartoons promoting racism
Circumcision Cartoon In Norwegian
Newspaper Angers Jewish Groups
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/05/31/circumcision-cartoon-in-norwegian-newspaper_n_3364643.html
Proposed legislation impacts Muslims
The most likely result of the present disinformation
campaign in Denmark will be requirements for
better medical oversight. However, it appears this
will only effect Muslims:
http://www.mx.dk/nyheder/danmark/story/30519536
The effect of such a law in Sweden was that twothirds of circumcisions went "underground":
http://din-online.info/pdf/fam5-3.pdf
Such procedures, undertaken in less safe
conditions, will lead to a greater complication rate
Promoting sexual dysfunction and discrimination
Effect of disinformation in "Seksualitet og Sundhed"
The findings in the Report can be expected to create negative expectations among
circumcised men and their women partners:
:men are lead to believe that problems in reaching orgasm are likely.
:women are led to believe they will more likely have pain during intercourse.
:women are led to believe they will have orgasm difficulties.
:women are led to believe they are less likely to have their sexual needs fulfilled.
(We can also expect women, who have not had sexual intercourse with a circumcised
man, to discriminate against circumcised men when choosing sex partners.)
Since sexual function is strongly influenced by expectations, this Report increases
sexual disfunction in the Danish population. It is also likely to promote racism, both
in the choice of partners and in attitudes toward minority groups which "mutilate"
children.
Increase in death rates
In 2012, an estimated 2.3 million
people were newly infected with HIV.
http://www.amfar.org/about-hiv-and-aids/facts-and-stats/statistics--worldwide/
A barrier to circumcision has been
misconceptions surrounding sexual pleasure
and performance. Similar to what was found
in this study, other studies have shown issues
of sexual performance and sexual pleasure as
frequently reported misconceptions
surrounding male circumcision.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3817655/
Slow progress in expansion of
voluntary circumcision coverage
Progress towards greater coverage of voluntary
male circumcision (MC) in Africa remains slow,
and is due as much to men’s fear of the operation
as it is to resource constraints, despite low and
decreasing rates of complications, the 20th
Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic
Infections (CROI 2013) heard on Monday.
http://www.aidsmap.com/page/2590358/