Circumcision ‘Helps in Some Areas But Not All’
May 20, 2009 | Posted by bryan | 0 Comments
Circumcision has been associated with a number of health benefits in new research – but does not prevent syphilis, the scientists have found.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases looked into the different diseases that might be avoided following circumcision.
Some two years after the procedure, they examined the prevalence of diseases and found no significant difference in syphilis incidence rates between circumcised and control groups.
However, genital herpes was seen to be less prevalent in the group of men who had been circumcised.
Other, potentially more serious conditions were also seen to be less likely to occur following circumcision.
Human papillomavirus, or HPV, is known to be linked with an increased risk of developing cancer or genital warts.
But circumcision was associated with a 35 per cent reduction in the number of participants who had HPV.
And the researchers claim that HIV is as much as 50 per cent less likely to be contracted after circumcision.
The news follows previous studies by the institute which were so successful that they were halted earlier than planned to allow the results to be reported.
In tests in Kenya and Uganda, circumcision was associated with 53 per cent and 48 per cent reductions respectively in the rate at which HIV was contracted.