Ethics of circumcision

Male circumcision is the surgical removal of the foreskin (prepuce) from the human penis. The ethics of circumcision in children has been a source of controversy.

Adult circumcision. In a paper published June 2006, the British Medical Association Committee on Medical Ethics does not consider circumcision of an adult male to be controversial, provided that the adult is of sound mind and grants his personal consent after receiving all material information regarding the known risks, disadvantages, and potential benefits to be derived from the surgical operation.

Circumcision of adults as a public health measure for the purpose of reducing the spread of HIV also involves ethical concerns such as informed consent and concerns about reducing attention paid to other measures. According to the CDC website, research has documented a significant reduction of HIV/AIDS transmission when a male is circumcised.

Child circumcision. In the same British Medical Association paper, circumcision of a child to treat a clear and present medical indication after a trial of conservative treatment also is not considered to be ethically questionable, provided that a suitable has granted surrogate consent after receiving all material information regarding the known risks, disadvantages, and potential benefits to be derived from the surgical operation.

The non-consensual circumcision of children for non-therapeutic reasons is controversial. Since children are unable to consent, informed consent for circumcision must be granted by a surrogate. Some believe that surrogates are not empowered to grant consent for non-diagnostic and non-therapeutic procedures. Some believe that parents have a right to circumcise a child, regardless of the child's wishes. Some believe that non-therapeutic circumcision of a child violates the human rights and bodily integrity of the child and can not be in the child's best interests. Some believe that their religion requires males to be circumcised. Some believe that circumcision is a lifelong irreversible injury. Some believe that non-therapeutic circumcision provides certain health benefits. Some believe that the foreskin has numerous physiological functions and should be preserved. These conflicts have created a wide diversity of opinion regarding the propriety and ethics of child circumcision as discussed below.

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Wikipedia