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The roll-out of male circumcision: reduction in HIV prevalence, condom use maintained
Roger Pebody, 2011-07-20 21:10:00
The ongoing roll-out of male circumcision in Orange Farm, South Africa has succeeded in bringing the proportion of men who are circumcised from 16% to 49% in three years, delegates heard at the International AIDS Society conference in Rome on Wednesday. Among men aged 15 to 49 who are circumcised, HIV prevalence is 55% lower.
At the same time, a number of studies have shown that circumcision has not led to increases in sexual risk taking. This is particularly important now that it is known that circumcision reduces HIV risk and therefore there could be 'behavioural disinhibition'.
But countries which have implemented large programmes to make male circumcision widely available remain the exception rather than the rule. Bertran Auvert, principal investigator at Orange Farm said that his study “shows that the roll-out of safe adult male circumcision should become a top health priority in Southern and Eastern Africa, and that a strong political commitment is needed”.
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