The professional imperative for obstetrician-gynecologists to discontinue newborn male circumcision

Abstract

Newborn male circumcision has been practiced for millennia for a variety of medical, social, religious, and cultural reasons. Indications for routine circumcision remain controversial, with proponents and dissidents arguing their sides vigorously. Popular in the United States, it has persisted in the scope of practice of obstetrics and gynecology, a field specializing in the opposite gender. To excel in women's reproductive health, we should no longer passively accept or actively maintain this procedure in our specialty. Steps are suggested to remove the residual and improper inclusion of circumcision from the scope of practice of obstetrics and gynecology. Copyright © 2011 by Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc.