It is important to remember that cirucmcision is surgery - a very common surgery, but still an operation.
Many parents declare that they choose circumcision for their son to reduce his risk of UTIs, penile cacner, STDs. But the evidence shows that circumcision does not PREVENT any of those things, and the reduction in risk is small (if it exists at all). But some parents insist that even a slight reduction in risk of UTI, or penile cancer, or HIV, is worth it.
But what about the risks of the operation itself? Why are some parents so concerned about reducig their son's risk of UTI from 1.5% to 1% (for example), but they seem completely unconcerned about exposing him to the risks of surgery.
The AAP downplays the risks, but still concludes that the medical benefits do not outweigh the risks.
Immediate risks of infant circumcision include excessive bleeding and "slip of the knife" errors. Babies don't have much blood to spare, and it doesn't take much blood loss (just a few tablespoons) to have devastating effects. There have been a couple of cases in the media in the last few years about babies bleeding to death from their circumcision wounds. And while accidents are not common, they can be catastrophic. Most folks have heard of the case of David Reimers, whose penis was so badly damaged during his circumcision that it had to be amputated - and he was subsequently raised as a girl.
The next complication to watch for is infection. Common sense suggests that an open wound wrapped in a diaper does offer the potential for infection. And with the high incidence of MSRA in hospitals, the severity of an infection can be very high.
Unlike many surgeries, where complications arise short-term or not at all, circumcision complications can develop years after the operation. Adhesions can form soon after the surgery, or as long as a year later. If left alone, adhesions will usually resolve on their own, much the way an intact foreksin eventually separates from the glans, but in some cases surgery is required to release them. If parents (or medical professionals!) break the adhesions, additional scar tissue can form. Since scar tissue is not elastic, phimosis or paraphimosis can result.
Meatal stenosis occurs in about 10% of all circumcised males, and is virtually unheard of in intact males. http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1016016-overview In some cases, surgery is required to expand the opening, and if it goes untreated for a long time, urine can back up into the kidneys, causing additional problems.
If too much foreskin is removed, a man can experience painful stretching, even bleeding, during erections. Sometimes scrotal skin is pulled up the shaft of the penis ("hairy penis"). An uneven cut can cause unnatural curvature of the penis.
My question is this: what makes the medical benefits of circumcision so compelling that they outweigh the risks of bleeding, infection, accident, adhesions, meatal stenosis, removal of too much foreskin, even death?
Parents who have had sons circumcised - did your doctor discuss any of these possible complications with you?
