The effect of circumcision on the mental health of children: a review

• Published in: Türk psikiyatri dergisi Vol. 23; no. 1; pp. 63 - 70
• Main Authors: Yavuz, Mesut, Demir, Türkay, Doğangün, Burak
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Turkish
• Published: Turkey Turkiye Sinir ve Ruh Sagligi Dernegi (Turkish Association of Nervous and Mental Health) 01.03.2012
• Subjects: Body Image - psychology; Child; Child, Preschool; Circumcision, Female - ethics; Circumcision, Female - history; Circumcision, Female - psychology; Circumcision, Male - ethics; Circumcision, Male - history; Circumcision, Male - psychology; Culture; Female; History, 19th Century; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; History, Ancient; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Informed Consent By Minors - ethics; Informed Consent By Minors - psychology; Islam; Judaism; Male; Mental Health; Religion and Medicine; Turkey; Turkey
• ISSN: 1300-2163; 2651-3463
• DOI: 10.5080/u6508

Circumcision is one of the oldest and most frequently performed surgical procedures in the world. It is thought that the beginning of the male circumcision dates back to the earliest times of history. Approximately 13.3 million boys and 2 million girls undergo circumcision each year. In western societies, circumcision is usually performed in infancy while in other parts of the world, it is performed at different developmental stages. Each year in Turkey, especially during the summer months, thousands of children undergo circumcision. The motivations for circumcision include medical-therapeutic, preventive-hygienic and cultural reasons. Numerous publications have suggested that circumcision has serious traumatic effects on children's mental health. Studies conducted in Turkey draw attention to the positive meanings attributed to the circumcision in the community and emphasize that social effects limit the negative effects of circumcision. Although there are many publications in foreign literature about the mental effects of the circumcision on children's mental health, there are only a few studies in Turkey about the mental effects of the one of the most frequently performed surgical procedures in our country. The aim of this study is to review this issue. The articles related to circumcision were searched by keywords in Pubmed, Medline, EBSCHOHost, PsycINFO, Turkish Medline, Cukurova Index Database and in Google Scholar and those appropriate for this review were used by authors.