Circumcision?

Question

I don't know if I spelled that right but my question is, what all is involved in a circumcision? Does it add any time to the baby's hospital stay and how long did it take? We are having a boy in December and my husband and I want this done but I am a little anxious about it.

My pediatrican will be doing the procedure while he is in the hospital.

Answer 1

They circumcised my son when he was only a day old, they came and told me why they where taking him and he came back about fifteen minutes later, just as happy as he was when he left!
And don't worry about people saying that he will be mad with you, it is sooo much better than not being circumcised! If you don't get him circumcised there is a much greater risk of it getting infected because that skin covers it and keeps it warm and moist, a prime environment for bacteria to grow!

Answer 2

Why are you anxious about it?

In a "perfect" situation is adds no time to a baby's stay and it takes about 15-30 minutes.

If there are complications and the baby bleeds out or gets an infection or has a bad reaction to anesthetic your hospital stay can be considerably longer. I work in pediatric and neonatal intensive care and I have seen babies have complications from circ.

If you want to know what happens during a circumcision you can read about it here (pictures included):

http://www.cirp.org/library/procedure/plastibell/

If I were you I would research circumcision. It has been proven to remove the most sensitive parts of a man's penis, it is an unneccesary cosmetic procedure that no health organization in the world recommends and it is very painful for the baby.

Answer 3

You might like to re-think the decision after watching this video:
http://www.youtube.com/verify_age?next_url=/watch%3Fv%3DXmX6RdRNoqk

It is not just a "snip" - first they pull back the foreskin from the glans (it is attached in babies like the fingernail is attached to the finger) then they cut it off. People say the babies don't always cry - because they're in shock. It's also been shown to disrupt breastfeeding.

Do a bit of research and you'll find out it's really not necessary, nor is it practised anywhere other than the US (except Muslim and Jewish countries). An intact penis is not hard to look after (easier than a surgical wound); infections are rare; complications from the surgery are more common, and there is no proof that it prevents against things like STDs (even if it does, it's still incredibly risky to not use condoms). Even in the US only half of boys are currently circumcised so the "locker room" factor isn't a big thing. In the US there is still not a lot of knowledge about the intact penis which is why so many have "problems" - in fact the foreskin is attached for the first few years of life so there can't be a "tight foreskin" or anything - and circumcision can always be done as an adult as well. Your son's penis, his choice, right?

Answer 4

It takes a few seconds and does not add time to the hospital stay.

Edit: It's looking like different places have different practices. When my daughter was born they nurse asked ahead of time that if it was a boy did we want them to perform a circumcision. Obviously that didn't happen, it was a girl. But they did offer. I think it was going to add a small fee like $50 or something to the bill.

Anyways, that was 10 years ago, and in NY state. You may want to consult your doctor for local policies and advice.

Answer 5

The doctor will use a circumstraint that will hold down his arms and legs. The surgery will take a few minutes and your baby will do some intense crying during that time. Once it is over, your baby will likely stop crying and won't show any evidence of being in pain afterward. That was my experience with my sons. I also did a poll on a parenting website and the VAST majority of mothers claimed that their babies cried briefly (but loudly) with or without painkillers. They seemed fine once it was over.

If your baby is getting circumcized at the hospital then it will likely be done when he is 1 or 2 days old (depending on the length of the hospital stay). The first time he pees after the circ then you and baby could go home. Everyone I've known that had their son circumcized at the hospital, had it done on the day they were being discharged. However they had to wait for the baby to pee before they could leave. Waiting for the baby to pee won't extend your hospital stay.;)

Answer 6

It's your baby and while he is small you have duty of care.
But think about it this way: when the baby is grown up, how will HE feel about it?
It can't be undone.
I am speaking as a male who was not circumcised but had to have it done for medical reasons.
As such I hope you will give it some thought because I would sooner not have had to do it.
It's only a minor procedure.
Should not add to stay in hospital.

Answer 7

If you are anxious about it do some more research on it. It's not something that HAS to be done, more and more people are deciding not to circumcise. None of the men in my family are, and none of them have had infections of any kind. As long as you teach a child how to clean it properly when they are older there should be no problem.

Answer 8

First of all, I'd ask how do you know you want it done if you don't know what's involved? =)

I recommend that you guys research it more a bit. It's a permanent procedure that cannot be reversed; be aware of the risks involved. Most 'benefits' are unfounded and exaggerated. (In many places the majority don't get circumcised nowadays).

Here's an article by a doctor that gives you most of the common questions about circumcision:
http://www.mothering.com/articles/new_baby/circumcision/against-circumcision.html

And here, the rest are statistics and studies on circumcision that I've compiled. Circumcision is a traditionally Jewish and Muslim surgery, although it was introduced and encouraged to the Western, developed world (North America and Europe, but especially the USA) as a way to stop masturbation, especially with the help of Dr. Kellogg. (see link 1) However, although scientific studies have discovered that circumcision harms masturbation by up to over 60% (2), needless to say, it doesn’t completely stop masturbation. Many circumcised guys just find it more convenient to use a lube like KY or lotion as a result (3) since the typically moist foreskin (like the eyelids) is not there to rub the head of the penis with (4).

Most developed nations quickly rejected circumcision after noticing its ineffectiveness against masturbation (they were quite religious back then!), and as a result the United States remains the last developed nation doing it to a significant percentage of newborns. (5) This was done as a result of the for-profit American health care system promoting myths about benefits of circumcision (6), such as preventing penile cancer (6a, 6b), preventing HIV (6c, 6d) despite the USA being the developed nation with the highest HIV rates and circumcision rates (6e, 5), and preventing STDs (6d, 6f). As a result, circumcision now brings in hundreds of millions of dollars to doctors and the American health system. (7)

However, circumcision has been becoming less popular as years have passed by. In the 1960s over 90% of guys were circumcised in the USA, now circumcision rates are as low as 14% in some states. (8) More and more parents are discovering that circumcision carries more risks than benefits, and realize that by leaving their sons uncircumcised, their sons have the choice of choosing what they’d like, since the surgery is irreversible (you can't go back if you don't like it or if it goes wrong).

Circumcision risks include the loss of sexual pleasure according to multiple studies (2, 9, 10, 11). Those studies take into effect many sensation points, including the foreskin, and they involve many participants. There have been other studies that claim no difference, but they don’t even take into effect the nerve endings on the foreskin, which as seen in one study, are some of the most sensitive points on the penis (10). One study even found an increase in erectile dysfunction rates after circumcision (10a). In another study, it was found that females ended up reaching orgasm with and preferring uncircumcised males in 9 out of 10 cases (10b). In addition, circumcision is extremely painful on newborns (12, 13, 14), and you risk many bad conditions, such as a buried penis when too much foreskin is removed and limits the size of the penis (15), or adhesions or skin bridges that develop from the head to the shaft when the skin heals after the surgery (16), meatal stenosis [occurs in up to 10% of circumcised males!] when the opening of the penis becomes irritated from too much exposure and rubbing and begins to close up (17), and meatal ulcers (18). All those risks are, of course, not including the possibility of having too much skin removed, which can cause discomfort during erections due to lack of skin to allow the penis to expand, and could consequently cause a hairy penis by pulling pubic hair and skin to the shaft. Often a circumcision scar develops around the penis after circumcision. In addition, circumcision has negative effects on breastfeeding. (18)

To conclude, here is a link that describes the anatomy of the foreskin (19) and the development of the foreskin with infants, a link especially helpful for parents (19a). Ultimately, one survey found that although uncircumcised guys are a bit more satisfied percentage-wise, it’s within the margin of error. (20) The only difference is that those unsatisfied uncircumcised guys can simply get circumcised and end up satisfied either way. If you're cut or uncut and happy, you'll say that side is better. If you got cut later in life, you'll say cut because you had problems with your foreskin before. If you're cut and had something go wrong or wish to have had a choice, then you'll say uncut. One survey found that up to half of circumcised guys wished to have had the choice themselves (as in, been left uncircumcised and they could have chosen to get circumcised if they wished later on in life). That's a huge number. (21) That, along with the risks and negative effects that are being seen more with the help of the Internet, may be what is bringing down circumcision rates.

Answer 9

please please please do not get him done. why do you want to get it done. I'm an adult who is still intact and have never had a problem with being intact and my 8yo son is also and he knows how to clean it etc. if he wants to get it done as an adult then that's his choice but do you really have the right to get it done when it is not medically required. sure there are some men out there who are glad they got it done as an adult and that is their choice to make.
It is not dirty, does not spread disease, is not ugly and does not smell. if you wash it and take car of it then there is very little chance of it causing a problem. over 85% of the worlds men are intact and love it. a lot less males in the USA are getting it done these days becasue they realise there is no medical reason to get it done.
sure it MAY cause a problem at some time but so may their tonsils or appendix, do we get them removed? please watch the video of the baby being done on the links below and tel me you could get this done to him when it is not required.

some say they will never get sex as an adult if they are intact. Well i can say that i have never had a problem in that area and some have even said it is better when the guy is intact.

Answer 10

I’m 23 years old, uncut (not circumcised), and I couldn’t be happier. Please don’t put your baby through this “fast,” “healthy,” etc. pain. Males have a foreskin for a reason – to keep it clean and for normal pleasure. Removing a foreskin is like removing your eyelids or removing a woman’s clitoris hood. If you (and when your son grows older) clean the gland of the penis properly (non-harsh soap and water, while showering) he’ll have a clean penis, just like a circumcised male. We (uncut males) have thousands of nerves that are on the foreskin itself. Once you remove it, you’re scaring him mentally and physically. It’s a pain to “cut” this off! Please, either a wait until he’s much older and/or let HIM decide if he want’s to have it removed. America is the last of the remaining countries to remove foreskins. 85-90% of the world is uncut! Let him be normal!

Answer 11

Please Don't Do It!

Let Your Son Have A Full Penis, Let Him Have A Choice On If He Wants It...B/c If He Doesn't He Can Never Get His Forskin Back.

He Will Be Perfect As He Is You Don't Need To Cut Any Body Parts Off Of Him.

In Short It's "His" Penis, He'll Have It For The Rest Of His Life, How Long Will You Have To Deal With It?