Male Circumcision prevents HIV - UN

New York, 10 Sept-(ANA)-Male circumcision is a cost-effective means to prevent the spread of HIV,  a new United Nations-backed report has said.

The report found that one HIV infection could be averted for every five to 15 procedures performed on heterosexual men. 
 
Using a 10-year time horizon, the study put the cost of averting one HIV 
infection in high HIV prevalence areas between $150 and $900. 
  
First-line treatment costs typically exceed $7,000 over a lifetime, and double 
that if second-line therapies are used, the report said. 
 
With each circumcision procedure costing between $30 and $60, with neonatal 
circumcision costing only one-third that amount, “circumcising sexually active 
males of any age is likely to be cost saving,” it stressed. 
 
However, the new publication pointed out that male circumcision may have only a 
minimal impact on curbing HIV transmission among men who have sex with men. 
 
Additionally, despite studies confirming that circumcision could decrease 
female-to-male HIV transmission by 60 per cent, the procedure does not directly 
protect women from the virus, the report said. (ANA)

FA/ANA/10 September 2009---