In Australia today, fewer than 20 per cent of boys are circumcised. When considering circumcision for your child, you should be aware of the possible risks and benefits.
In the United States, newborn circumcision is an elective procedure. The National Center for Health Statistics estimates that about 64 percent of newborn boys undergo circumcision. However, this number varies among socioeconomic, ethnic, and geographic groups.
What is circumcision? Circumcision is a surgical operation to remove skin or tissue from the genitals. All forms of female circumcision are illegal in Australia.
Present. Rates vary widely, from over 90% in Israel and many Muslim-majority countries, 86.3% in South Korea, to 80% in the United States, to 58% in Australia, to 45% in South Africa, to 20.7% in the United Kingdom, to under 1% in Japan and Honduras.
- Australia's routine circumcision rate peaked at 85 per cent between 1950-1980. - Due to a societal and cultural shift, the 1980s saw circumcision rates fall to 15 per cent in Australia.
Back in the 1950s, roughly 80 per cent of Australian men and boys were circumcised. That rate has steadily decreased and now, around 20 per cent of Australian newborns are circumcised. This is largely due to developments in modern medicine.
Cosmetic circumcision for newborn males is currently banned in all Australian public hospitals, South Australia being the last state to adopt the ban in 2007; the procedure was not forbidden from being performed in private hospitals.
In China, the nation with the largest population in the world, circumcision is generally treated as a selective medical intervention to treat some diseases; only 2.66% of males have been circumcised, and EIMC is not a traditional practice, except among Muslims, who account for < 3% of the population [14].
In Japan, routine male circumcision has never been implemented for newborns and children, and adult males are mostly circumcised at aesthetic clinics. However, media reports indicate a trend of Japanese mothers willing to have their sons circumcised.
Circumcision is also standard in the United States and parts of Southeast Asia and Africa, but is rare in Europe, Latin America, and most of Asia. A personal preference in favor of circumcision is more common in Anglophone countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Subincision of the penis is a traditional ritual mutilation unique to the Aborigines, the indigenous people of Australia. The mutilation is a urethrotomy in which the undersurface of the penis is incised and the urethra slit open lengthwise. Subincision is one element in the initiation of Aboriginal youths.
Circumcision will be painful for the baby or child, both at the time of the operation and for some days after. The Paediatrics & Child Health Division of The Royal Australasian College of Physicians(RACP) strongly recommends the use of pain relief both during and after the operation.
Eventually, the foreskin should be retracted far enough during urination to see the meatus (the hole where the urine comes from). This prevents urine from building up beneath the foreskin and possibly causing an infection. As long as the foreskin doesn't easily retract, only the outside needs to be cleaned.
The American Academy of Pediatrics considers circumcision a choice for parents to make. Some parents choose circumcision for religious or cultural reasons. It is important to consider the pros and cons, how the surgery is performed and the potential complications. Not all insurance companies pay for the procedure.
Despite the aforementioned benefits, newborn circumcision rates in the United States have declined significantly over the past few decades.
Paul Tinari estimated that a single male foreskin can be worth upwards of $100,000.
The NMC group included 72 patients (29.0%) who were circumcised during the newborn period; the non-NMC group included 176 patients (71.0%) who were circumcised after the newborn period. There was no significant difference in height, weight, and second to fourth digit ratio between both groups (Table 3).
Almost 60% of men reported that they would prefer to be circumcised and 76% of women stated a preference for circumcised sexual partners.
Among the non-circumcising nations are Holland, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Scandinavia, the U.S.S.R. , China, and Japan. People employing circumcision do so either for "health" reasons or as a religious ritual practiced by Muslims, Jews, most black Africans, non-white Australians, and others.
The incidence of circumcision was highest in the men aged 40-44 at 19.6 percent [born 1956-60] and lowest in the group aged 16-19 [born 1981-84] at 11.7 percent. Men of ethnic minorities (except black Caribbeans) were signficantly more likely to circumcised than those described as "white".
In the middle of the last century, most Canadian boys were circumcised. However, the rate of neonatal circumcision has declined over time to the current Canadian average of 32%, with significant regional variability.
Circumcision, which rarely occurs in Vietnam, was associated with a 2 mm reduced penis length. Discussion: Findings on correlations between penile dimensions and somatometric parameters from previous studies are questionable and some measurements, such as glans dimension, have not been thoroughly investigated so far.
With the exception of the commemoration of the circumcision of Jesus in accordance with Jewish practice, circumcision has not been part of Catholic practice.
Non-medically indicated circumcision in boys in Germany can be performed explicitly by discretion of parental custody since 2013. In the first six months of life, circumcision may be performed by non-physicians if this person is designated to do so by a religious community [46].
The cost for circumcising a baby up to 6 weeks of age is $550 at our Brisbane & Gold Coast circumcision clinics. The price increases with age. Please contact us by phone at 07 2103 2322 or use the Cost Confirmation form to get the circumcision cost that applies in your case if your son is over 6 weeks of age.