Child Circumcision: an Elephant in the Hospital

Public video available here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ceht-3...

Ryan McAllister, PhD

What is infant circumcision? Why is the practice common in U.S. hospitals and not in other countries? What does it remove and how does that affect the child? Does scientific data suggest that circumcision has benefits? What are the potential complications? How does it affect sexuality? Is it a medical procedure or a social surgery? If it's unnecessary surgery, what about contemporary bioethics principles?

Through both a review of scientific literature and a discussion of the human cost of the procedure, this presentation explores these questions from the perspectives of the child, the adult survivor, the parent, and the practitioner.

Ryan is a parent, a biophysicist, an Assistant Professor of Physics and Oncology at Georgetown University, and also a volunteer who supports parents and families. Over the last 10 years he has been studying the medicalization of childbirth in U.S. hospitals.

The slides, supplementary material, references and a copy of the video can be downloaded here:
http://physics.georgetown.edu/~rmca/E...

NOTE: This presentation includes some graphic slides necessary to present the procedure and anatomy being discussed.

• Category

  Education

[MsKillerqueen5]

thanks to this..i wont do it to my baby....ill leave him just as he is :)

[Challenger Male]

Georgetown University please know it's not the video picture quality that matters,

Rather it's the message presented in this video that matters the most!

Please change your settings and list it for public viewing.

Thanks.

[justin perez]

Some women in the past in the US were genitally mutilated for the SAME medical quakery as well as sexual repression.

Also women have foreskins as well, in fact, most female commenters on here are intact (uncircumcised.) They know the benefits of being covered by the same skin (homological prepuce.)

[justin perez]

Yeah, more intact men need to speak up. Women as well, since they too have a foreskin as well (clitoral hood.)

[nati123]

Thank you so much for this video. I feel so reassured about my decision of not letting others to cut my son's foreskin. It is just common sense. My husband and I both agreed not to do it. I researched a lot before my decision and my son is a very happy and healthy baby boy. I don't care when people give me a hard time because I decided not to circumcise my son. Even my doctor said it was NOT necessary and he was OK with our decision. Please, do your research.

[vorpal22]

Seriously??? WTF?

People are such complete idiots at times. The vast majority of the world is uncircumcised. Why are people so fucking freaked out by a piece of skin?

[Amber Sanders-Platt]

We got hell from my husbands family for years on our decision to not circumcise. Wish people would read articles and understand what they think they are talking about before judging others... but they are very closed minded and set in their ways. If it's different from what they were told/taught they wont even consider it.

[jbfamily1125]

When you know better, you do better. You didn't know. Now that you do, leave future sons intact, and spread the word!

[Fat87Strat]

Your son will thank you. As an intact man I can attest to that. My parents decided they didn't want to put me through that pain, thankfully my mom is a nurse and has seen several procedures first hand. She said she couldn't imagine doing that to her son. I grew up at a time when the majority of my peers were circumcised, so of course there is a bit of insecurity that comes with one's youth. But once I grew up, I realized why I was born the way I was. I wouldn't change it for a billion dollars.

[Fat87Strat]

And he will thank you later in life! I recently reached out to my mom and thanked her for leaving me with the best, and most important part of my little man! Glad you listened!

[Fat87Strat]

But you can educate him so he DOESN'T DO IT TO HIS!!! It won't be an easy conversation to have, but it's an important one!!!