AAP Issues New Circumcision Recommendations

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recently issued new recommendations stating that the benefits of circumcision are not significant enough for the AAP to recommend it as a routine procedure. The new policy statement was published in Pediatrics, the journal of the AAP.

"Circumcision is not essential to a child's well-being at birth, even though it does have some potential medical benefits," says Dr. Carole Lannon, MPH, FAAP, chair of the AAP's Task Force on Circumcision. "These benefits are not compelling enough to warrant the AAP to recommend routine newborn circumcision. Instead, we encourage parents to discuss the benefits and risks of circumcision with their pediatrician, and then make an informed decision about what is in the best interest of their child."

The policy concluded, however, that it is legitimate for parents to take into account cultural, religious and ethnic traditions, in addition to medical factors, when making this decision. It states that to make an informed choice, parents of all male infants should be given accurate information and be provided the opportunity to discuss this decision with their pediatrician. For the first time in AAP circumcision policy history, the new recommendations also indicate that if parents decide to circumcise their infant, it is essential that pain relief be provided.

Here are some of the conditions surrounding circumcision and what the AAP thinks about them:

Although studies show the relative risk of developing a urinary tract infection (UTI) in the first year of life is higher for baby boys who are uncircumcised, the AAP policy concludes that their absolute risk of developing one is low – approximately 1 percent. Research indicates that during the first year of life an uncircumcised male infant has at most about a one in 100 chance of developing a UTI, while a circumcised male has about a one in 1,000 chance.

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