San Diego, California -
Men who are circumcised are less likely to become infected with HIV than those who are uncut. In the largest study ever undertaken into the possible link between HIV and circumcision, researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore say uncut men are eight times more likely to become infected with the AIDS virus.
The findings were presented last week at a San Diego meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
The Johns Hopkins team conducted its research on nearly 2,300 men in India. While circumcision is common in North America and elsewhere for religious and cultural reasons and to help prevent urinary tract infections and penile cancer, it is not practiced in the majority of the world.
In the United States, some two-thirds of male infants are circumcised annually, but there has been growing reluctance to the practice which some consider mutilation. The American Academy of Pediatrics has said it no longer recommends routine circumcision because, despite some medical benefit, there can be complications.
Dr. Steven Reynolds, one of the lead scientists in the Johns Hopkins team believes that the inner surface of the foreskin may not have the same protective layer as the outside, and is potentially more vulnerable to HIV.
Reynolds and his team also studied the risk of other sexually transmitted diseases among circumcised and uncircumcised men. Although the incidence of diseases like syphilis, gonorrhea and genital herpes was slightly higher among uncircumcised men, the difference was not statistically significant.
Reynolds said more research needs to be done to determine if there is a definitive link between circumcision and HIV transmission.
"Circumcision as a potential prevention strategy requires confirmation by randomized clinical trials," Reynolds said. There currently are clinical trials underway in Uganda, Kenya and South Africa.
AIDS prevention experts warn that even if there is a link between circumcision and HIV transmission, barebacking by men who are cut does not mean they will not pass on the virus. The use of condoms is the only proven method of preventing the spread of the disease by sexually active men.
by Matt Johns
365Gay.com Newscenter
Los Angeles Bureau
©365Gay.com® 2003
The findings were presented last week at a San Diego meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
The Johns Hopkins team conducted its research on nearly 2,300 men in India. While circumcision is common in North America and elsewhere for religious and cultural reasons and to help prevent urinary tract infections and penile cancer, it is not practiced in the majority of the world.
In the United States, some two-thirds of male infants are circumcised annually, but there has been growing reluctance to the practice which some consider mutilation. The American Academy of Pediatrics has said it no longer recommends routine circumcision because, despite some medical benefit, there can be complications.
Dr. Steven Reynolds, one of the lead scientists in the Johns Hopkins team believes that the inner surface of the foreskin may not have the same protective layer as the outside, and is potentially more vulnerable to HIV.
Reynolds and his team also studied the risk of other sexually transmitted diseases among circumcised and uncircumcised men. Although the incidence of diseases like syphilis, gonorrhea and genital herpes was slightly higher among uncircumcised men, the difference was not statistically significant.
Reynolds said more research needs to be done to determine if there is a definitive link between circumcision and HIV transmission.
"Circumcision as a potential prevention strategy requires confirmation by randomized clinical trials," Reynolds said. There currently are clinical trials underway in Uganda, Kenya and South Africa.
AIDS prevention experts warn that even if there is a link between circumcision and HIV transmission, barebacking by men who are cut does not mean they will not pass on the virus. The use of condoms is the only proven method of preventing the spread of the disease by sexually active men.
by Matt Johns
365Gay.com Newscenter
Los Angeles Bureau
©365Gay.com® 2003
This article originally appeared on 365gay.com. Republished with permission.
