title: Parents' rationale for male circumcision.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine which factors parents consider to be most important when pursuing elective circumcision procedures in newborn male children.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Saskatoon, Sask.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 230 participants attending prenatal classes in the Saskatoon Health Region over a 3-month period.
  
  
  METHODS
  Parents' plans to pursue circumcision, personal and family circumcision status, and factors influencing parents' decision making on the subject of elective circumcision.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The reasons that parents most often gave for supporting male circumcision were hygiene (61.9%), prevention of infection or cancer (44.8%), and the father being circumcised (40.9%). The reasons most commonly reported by parents for not supporting circumcision were it not being medically necessary (32.0%), the father being uncircumcised (18.8%), and concerns about bleeding or infection (15.5%). Of all parents responding who were expecting children, 56.4% indicated they would consider pursuing elective circumcision if they had a son; 24.3% said they would not. In instances in which the father of the expected baby was circumcised, 81.9% of respondents were in favour of pursuing elective circumcision. When the father of the expected child was not circumcised, 14.9% were in favour of pursuing elective circumcision. Regression analysis showed that the relationship between the circumcision status of the father and support of elective circumcision was statistically significant (P < .001). Among couples in which the father was circumcised, 82.2% stated that circumcision by an experienced medical practitioner was a safe procedure for all boys, in contrast to 64.1% of couples in which the father of the expected child was not circumcised. When the expecting father was circumcised, no one responded that circumcision was an unsafe procedure, compared with 7.8% when the expecting father was not circumcised (P = .003).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite new medical information and updated stances from various medical associations, newborn male circumcision rates continue to be heavily influenced by the circumcision status of the child's father.
authors: University of Saskatchewan, 204 Brookside Ct, Warman, SK S0K 0A1. a.muller@usask.ca
authors: Chris
authors: C
authors: Rediger
authors: Andries J
authors: AJ
authors: Muller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D002944:Circumcision, Male / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003657:Decision Making; D017558:Elective Surgical Procedures / Q000523:psychology*; D005220:Fathers; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D006920:Hygiene; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D017053:Infection Control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012525:Saskatchewan; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult