Comments by opponents on the British Medical Association’s guidance on non-therapeutic male circumcision of children seem one-sided and may undermine public health

The British Medical Association(BMA)guidance on non-therapeutic circumcision(NTMC)of male children is limited to ethical,legal and religious issues.Here we evaluate criticisms of the BMA’s guidance by Lempert et al.While their arguments promoting autonomy and consent might be superficially appealing,their claim of high procedural risks and negligible benefits seem one-sided and contrast with high quality evidence of low risk and lifelong benefits.Extensive literature reviews by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in developing evidence-based policies,as well as risk-benefit analyses,have found that the medical benefits of infant NTMC greatly exceed the risks,and there is no reduction in sexual function and pleasure.The BMA’s failure to consider the medical benefits of early childhood NTMC may partly explain why this prophylactic intervention is discouraged in the United Kingdom.The consequence is higher prevalence of preventable infections,adverse medical conditions,suffering and net costs to the UK’s National Health Service for treatment of these.Many of the issues and contradictions in the BMA guidance identified by Lempert et al stem from the BMA’s guidance not being sufficiently evidence-based.Indeed,that document called for a review by others of the medical issues surrounding NTMC.While societal factors apply,ultimately,NTMC can only be justified rationally on scientific,evidence-based grounds.Parents are entitled to an accurate presentation of the medical evidence so that they can make an informed decision.Their decision either for or against NTMC should then be respected.

Male circumcision： towards a World Health Organisation normative practice in resource limited settings

There is now grade 1 evidence that male circumcision （MC） reduces the risk of a man acquiring HIV. Modelling studies indicate MC could in the next 10 years save up to 2 million lives in those African countries with high HIV prevalence. Several African countries are now scaling up public health MC programmes. The most effective immediate public health MC programmes in Africa will need to target 18-20 years old men. In the longer term there is a need for infant circumcision programmes. In order to implement more widespread MC there is a need to make the surgical procedures as simple as possible so that safe operations can be performed by paramedical staff. The WHO Manual of Male Circumcision under local anaesthetic was written with these objectives in mind. Included in the manual are three adult techniques and four paediatric procedures. The adult procedures are the dorsal slit, the for- ceps guided and the sleeve resection methods. Paediatric methods included are the plastibell technique, the Mogen and Gomco shield method and a standard surgical dorsal slit procedure. Each method is described in a step by step manner with photographic and line drawing illustrations. In addition to the WHO manual of surgical technique a teaching course has been developed and using this course it has been possible in one week to train a circumcision surgeon who has had no or minimal previous surgical experience. Further scaling will require training of circumcision surgeons, monitoring performance, training the trainer workshops as well as advocacy at national, international and government meetings. In addition to proceeding with standardised methods work is in progress to assess novel techniques in adults such as stay on ring devices and policies are being formulated as to how to assess new devices. Also work is in progress to explore efficiencies in surgical processing by task sharing. Proper informed consent and safety remain paramount and great care has to be taken as programmes in Africa scale up. In continental China where the HIV epidemic is at a much earlier stage there may be a case for considering infant circumcision but great care will be needed to ensure that there is no harm.

Effects of circumcision on male sexual functions： systematic review and meta-analysis

This meta-analysis was performed to assess sexual functions following adult male circumcision. We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PUBMED, EMBASE, the Cochrane Database of Systematic Review and Web of Science from their inception until January 2013 to identify all eligible studies that reported on men＇s sexual function after circumcision. The Cochrane Collaboration＇s RevMan 5.2 software was employed for data analysis, and the fixed or the random effect model was selected depending on the proportion of heterogeneity. We identified 10 studies, which described a total of 9317 circumcised and 9423 uncircumcised men who were evaluated for the association of circumcision with male sexual function. There were no significant differences in sexual desire （odds ratio （OR）： 0.99; 95% confidence interval （CI）： 0.92-1.06）, dyspareunia （OR： 1.12; 95% Ch 0.52-2.44）, premature ejaculation （OR. 1.13; 95% Ch 0.83-1.54）, ejaculation latency time （OR： 1.33; 95% Ch 0.69-1.97）, erectile dysfunctions （OR： 0.90; 95% Ch 0.65-1.25） and orgasm difficulties （OR： 0.97; 95% Ch 0.83-1.13）. These findings suggest that circumcision is unlikely to adversely affect male sexual functions. However, these results should be evaluated in light of the low quality of the existing evidence and the significant heterogeneity across the various studies. Well-designed and prospective studies are required for a further understanding of this topic.

Long-term follow-up for Shang Ring male circumcision

Background Shang Ring male circumcision （MC） is a safe surgery with good short-term effects.This retrospective study was performed to investigate the long-term result of patients who had undergone Shang Ring MC.Methods A total of 103 patients who underwent the surgery were recruited in the study.Before and after the surgery,a questionnaire inquiring sexual function and sexual satisfaction was filled up.Face-to-face interview was executed.Physical examination of the external genitals was performed and complications were evaluated.Results The median follow-up duration was 19.1 months （range from 9 to 28 months）.The mean width of penile mucosa was （9.3±2.5） mm.The mean width of scar was （3.7±1.6） mm.No tender pain was found in participants when palpating the penis.No significant or functional complication was observed except of mucosa asymmetry in one case and scar hyperplasia in two cases.The postoperative sexual function did not differ from the preoperative one,although partners showed better satisfaction toward sexual life.Conclusion Shang Ring MC represents a good long-term cosmetic result with no significant complication or adverse effects on sexual function.

Relationship between circumcision and human papillomavirus infection： a systematic review and meta-analysis

Male circumcision （MC） is reported to reduce human papillomavirus （HPV） prevalence in men. However, the efficacy remains imprecise. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the relationship between MC and genital HPV infection and genital warts. PUBMED, EMBASE, and Web of Science were searched from inception to March 22, 2015. We identified 30 papers, including a total of 12149 circumcised and 12252 uncircumcised men who were evaluated for the association of circumcision with genital HPV or genital warts. Compared with men who were not circumcised, circumcised men may have had significantly reduced odds of genital HPV prevalence （odds ratio [OR]： 0.68; 95% confidence interval [95% CI]： 0.56-0.82）. There was no significant association between MC and genital HPV acquisition of new infections （OR： 0.99; 95% CI： 0.62-1.60）, genital HPV clearance （OR： 1.38; 95% Ch 0.96-1.97）, and prevalence of genital warts （OR： 1.17; 95% CI： 0.63-2.17）. This meta-analysis suggests that circumcision reduces the prevalence of genital HPV infections. However, no clear evidence was found that circumcision was associated with decreased HPV acquisition, increased HPV clearance, or decreased the prevalence of genital warts. More studies are required to evaluate adequately the effect of MC on the acquisition and clearance of HPV infections and prevalence of genital warts.

Modified one-cut circumcision technique by clamp： reports of 2000 cases

In the western countries, circumcision has been .performed for a long time. However, because of religious and cultural differences, circumcision was rare in China before the 20th century. As a result, penile cancer, accounting for 17% of all cancers, was more common.With the introduction of western medicine in the 1920s, especially after the establishment of urology as a separate department, gradually more circumcisions were carried out.

Traditional knowledge in HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention program in northern Uganda

Uganda’s health care sector is choking with various challenges,such as poor physical infrastructure,inadequate professionals to run the few existing health centers,poor culture of adherence to professional ethical standards by some health care practitioners,shortages of medicines in most government hospitals/health centers,and corruption.Most of the challenges are more endemic in rural areas.It is on the above premise that this article discusses some of the challenges that health centers face in provision of care to the increasing number of HIV/AIDS patients in hard-to-reach rural communities in northern Uganda and the implications of such challenges on the economy.Uganda’s success in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the early 1990s was globally applauded because of its aggressive grassroots behavioral change crusades aimed at reducing the number of sexual partners.The success inspired a wave of financial aid programs from the US government to fight the disease across the developing world.However,the success was short-lived as the rate of HIV/AIDS infection in Uganda is currently rising,with the health care system struggling to provide care for the ballooning number of patients.To contribute to the curtailing cases of new infections,this article discuses the integration of the traditional authority and knowledge system in the national HIV/AIDS care and prevention program along with the biomedical approach currently being used.