New York Times November 28, 2006
Vital Signs
Outcomes: Circumcision May Reduce Risk of S.T.D.s By NICHOLAS BAKALAR
Men who are circumcised may have a significantly reduced risk of acquiring
a sexually transmitted disease compared with those who are not, a New Zealand
study has found.
Stuart Goldenberg
Researchers followed a group of 510 boys born in 1977, giving them frequent
periodic medical examinations until they were 25. Thirty percent of them had
been circumcised by age 15. A little less than 3 percent reported a medically
diagnosed sexually transmitted disease at age 21, and an additional 6.6 percent
reported one at 25.
After statistically adjusting for family education, socioeconomic status,
number of partners and self-reported unprotected sex, researchers concluded
that the odds of acquiring a subsequent S.T.D. were 3.19 times higher for men
who were uncircumcised. The study was published this month in Pediatrics.
David M. Fergusson, the lead author of the study and a professor of medical
psychology at Christchurch School of Medicine, warned that the results were not
conclusive. We are cautious about the findings, he said. They depend on
self-reports, and not all studies agree with ours. But our results definitely
suggest that circumcision may reduce rates of S.T.D.s. We think were correct,
but its best not to be dogmatic about it.
Dr. Fergusson declined to offer advice to parents. Decisions to circumcise
children should not be made on the basis of one study, he said. They should
be based on all the evidence.
There is certainly evidence of benefit, but the complicated decision parents
face is weighing the benefits against the risks of a surgical procedure.
Even if we assumed all the evidence favored circumcision, most children
wouldnt benefit from it. We estimate that you would have to circumcise 20 boys
to prevent one case of sexually transmitted disease.
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