Washington: Will removing a baby boy's foreskin leave him with reduced sensitivity later in life? No, suggests a recent study.
The research indicated that there are no differences in penile sensitivity for a variety of stimulus types and penile sites between circumcised and intact men.
Additionally, this study challenges past research suggesting that the foreskin is the most sensitive and, in turn, most sexually relevant, part of the adult penis.
When the American Academy of Pediatrics and Canadian Pediatric Society recently revised their policies concerning routine neonatal circumcision, public interest was reignited in this long-running debate.
Focusing on health outcomes, particularly protection against sexually transmitted infections, rather than penile sensitivity, the American policy statement supports routine circumcision of newborn males, while the Canadian policy does not.
"We directly tested whether circumcision is associated with a reduction in penile sensitivity by testing tactile detection, pain, warmth detection, and heat pain thresholds at multiple sites on the penis between groups of healthy (neonatally) circumcised and intact men," explained lead author Jennifer Bossio from the Queen's University.
She added that this study indicates that neonatal circumcision is not associated with changes in penile sensitivity and provides preliminary evidence to suggest that the foreskin is not the most sensitive part of the penis.
"Methodology and results from this study build on previous research and imply that if sexual functioning is related to circumcision status, this relationship is not likely the result of decreased penile sensitivity stemming from neonatal circumcision," observed Ms. Bossio.
The study is reported in The Journal of Urology.
