London - Australian doctors have recommended male circumcision as a means to prevent the spread of the HIV virus that causes AIDS.
Their review of previous studies of circumcision and HIV showed that the virus is usually passed through the penis and that men who have been circumcised are two to eight times less likely to become infected with HIV.
"Male circumcision should be seriously considered as an additional means of preventing HIV in all countries with a high prevalence of infection," Prof Roger Short of the University of Melbourne wrote in a report in the British Medical Journal. Prof Short and his colleagues acknowledged that cultural and religious attitudes play a major role in circumcision in many countries but said mounting evidence had proven the benefits.
Although circumcising babies is the least complicated procedure, it would not have an impact on HIV transmission rates for 15 to 20 years. The researchers suggested circumcising teenage boys would be much more effective.
The foreskin - removed during circumcision - contains cells that have HIV receptors which researchers suspect are the primary entry point for the virus into the penis.