Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The Chicago Tribune - November 19, 1999
Aamer Madhani, Tribune Staff Writer
Robert Bailey, a professor of epidemiology and anthropology at UIC, said Thursday he has completed research with Daniel Halperin, assistant adjunct professor at the University of California at San Francisco, that indicates African and Asian societies that traditionally do not perform male circumcision want the procedure available in their countries.
Several studies over the last 10 years have shown that male circumcision helps prevent HIV infection, but the international public health community has shied away from pushing the procedure in Africa and Asia over concerns that it would clash with cultural and religious mores in non-circumcising countries.
According to Bailey and Halperin's research, the risk of HIV infection is two to eight times higher for uncircumcised men.
They concluded in their research, which they published in the Nov. 20 edition of the journal The Lancet, that the international public health community should help make the procedure readily available in Asia and Africa.
"What a lot of the older men were telling me is that it's too late for them and their brothers to get circumcision," Bailey said. "But their sons and daughters are still sexually active, and they know it is safer to be circumcised."
Bailey and Halperin looked at 32 studies from eight countries in addition to doing scores of interviews with men and women in several Asian and African countries. He said many men told the researchers that they would be circumcised if they could.
In a Bailey's survey of 216 adults of the Luo tribe in Western Kenya, 60 percent of the men he talked to said they would prefer to be circumcised and 62 percent of the women he spoke with would prefer to have circumcised partners. But only 10 percent of the men the actually have had the procedure done.
Richard Burzynski, executive director of the International Council of AIDS Service Organization in Toronto, said that in a perfect world male circumcision would be readily available in these countries. But the cost of the procedure, which Bailey estimated at $5 per person, is not affordable in countries where the annual amount spent on health care averages $3 per person.
"I don't know if throwing money into circumcisions is what the world should be doing right now," Burzynski said. "While circumcision might reduce the risk of getting HIV, the procedure alone doesn't stop people from getting the virus."
991119
CT991101
Copyright © 1999 - Chicago Tribune. All rights reserved. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the Chicago Tribune, Permissions Desk, 435 North Michigan Avenue, Chicago, IL 60611 http://www.chicagotribune.com
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted funding from Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the Elton John AIDS Foundation, National Library of Medicine, Pacific Life Foundation, and donations from users like you.
Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 1999. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 1999. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .