Abraham L. Wolbarst: Difference between revisions
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'''Abraham Leo Wolbarst''', M.D.,({{LifeData|1872|1952}}) a New York City physician, was a notorious promoter of non-therapeutic neonatal male circumcision. | '''Abraham Leo Wolbarst''', M.D.,({{LifeData|1872|1952}}) a New York City physician, was a notorious promoter of non-therapeutic neonatal male circumcision. | ||
Holt (1913) reported that tubercular ''mohelim'' were infecting baby boys with tuberculosis by the performance of ritual circumcision | Holt (1913) reported in an article published in the ''Journal of the American Medical Association'' (JAMA) that tubercular ''mohelim'' were infecting baby boys with tuberculosis by the performance of ritual circumcision .<ref name="holt1913">{{REFjournal | ||
|last=Holt | |last=Holt | ||
|first=L. Emmet | |first=L. Emmet | ||
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|DOI= | |DOI= | ||
|accessdate=2020-03-30 | |accessdate=2020-03-30 | ||
}}</ref> Wolbarst was incensed by what he perceived as an attack on ritual circumcision, so he resolved to defend ritual circumcision by arguing that | }}</ref> Wolbarst was incensed by what he perceived as an attack on ritual circumcision, so he resolved to defend ritual circumcision by arguing that [[circumcision]] provided health benefits. Wolbarst's defense of circumcision was published in ''JAMA'' in 1914 and entitled "''Universal Circumcision as a Sanitary Measure''".<ref name="wolbarst1914">{{REFjournal | ||
|last=Wolbarst | |last=Wolbarst | ||
|first=Abraham L. | |first=Abraham L. | ||
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}}</ref> | }}</ref> | ||
This was before the days of evidence-based medicine, when doctors relied on medical ''opinion'', instead of scientific evidence. Wolbarst collected the ''opinions'' of several physicians and published those opinions as evidence for his argument that circumcision prevented diseases. Wolbarst argued that non-therapeutic neonatal circumcision prevented numerous diseases including venereal disease. | This was before the days of evidence-based medicine, when doctors relied on medical ''opinion'', instead of scientific evidence. Wolbarst collected the ''opinions'' of several physicians and published those opinions as evidence for his argument that circumcision prevented diseases. Wolbarst argued that non-therapeutic neonatal circumcision prevented numerous diseases including venereal disease (now known as sexually transmitted disease). | ||
Wolbarst's article appeared on the eve of World War I. It apparently influenced American military commanders to order circumcision of military personnel under their command to prevent venereal diseases and improve military readiness.<ref name="hill2002">{{REFweb | Wolbarst's article appeared on the eve of World War I. It apparently influenced American military commanders to order circumcision of military personnel under their command to prevent venereal diseases and improve military readiness.<ref name="hill2002">{{REFweb | ||
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|last=Hill | |last=Hill | ||
|first=George | |first=George | ||
|author-link= | |author-link=George Hill | ||
|publisher= | |publisher= | ||
|website= | |website=purewatergazette | ||
|date=2002-11-04 | |date=2002-11-04 | ||
|accessdate=2020-03-30 | |accessdate=2020-03-30 | ||
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}}</ref> No statistics exist to document how many men were circumcised because of Wolbarst's article. | }}</ref> No statistics exist to document how many men were circumcised because of Wolbarst's article. | ||
The adoption of circumcision as a prophylactic amputation by American military services falsely stigmatized the [[foreskin]] as being unhealthy. Van Howe (1999) has exhaustively shown that circumcision does not protect against STDs.<ref name="vanhowe1999">{{REFjournal | |||
|last=Van Howe | |||
|first=Robert S. | |||
|author-link=Robert Van Howe | |||
|etal=no | |||
|title=Does circumcision influence sexually transmitted diseases?: A literature review | |||
|trans-title= | |||
|language= | |||
|journal=BJU Int | |||
|location= | |||
|date=1999 | |||
|volume=83 Supple 1 | |||
|issue= | |||
|pages=52-62 | |||
|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1046/j.1464-410x.1999.0830s1052.x | |||
|quote= | |||
|pubmedID=10349415 | |||
|pubmedCID= | |||
|DOI=10.1046/j.1464-410x.1999.0830s1052.x | |||
|accessdate=2020-03-31 | |||
}}</ref> | |||
He was solely responsible for the invention of the myth that [[circumcision]] rendered males immune to [[penile cancer]].<ref name="wolbarst1932">Wolbarst, AL. Circumcision and penile cancer. ''Lancet'' 1932; 150-3.</ref> Wolbarst wrote an article that was published in ''The Lancet'' in 1932, implicating human male smegma as carcinogenic.<ref name="wolbarst1932"/> Wolbarst's myth was based entirely on unverifiable anecdotes, ethnocentric stereotypes, a faulty understanding of human anatomy and physiology, a misunderstanding of the distinction between association and cause, and an unbridled missionary zeal, and it had absolutely no basis in valid scientific and epidemiological research.<ref name="fleiss1996">Fleiss PM, Hodges F. [http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/fleiss/ Neonatal circumcision does not protect against cancer]. ''BMJ'' 1996;312(7033):779-80.</ref> | He was solely responsible for the invention of the myth that [[circumcision]] rendered males immune to [[penile cancer]].<ref name="wolbarst1932">Wolbarst, AL. Circumcision and penile cancer. ''Lancet'' 1932; 150-3.</ref> Wolbarst wrote an article that was published in ''The Lancet'' in 1932, implicating human male smegma as carcinogenic.<ref name="wolbarst1932"/> Wolbarst's myth was based entirely on unverifiable anecdotes, ethnocentric stereotypes, a faulty understanding of human anatomy and physiology, a misunderstanding of the distinction between association and cause, and an unbridled missionary zeal, and it had absolutely no basis in valid scientific and epidemiological research.<ref name="fleiss1996">Fleiss PM, Hodges F. [http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/fleiss/ Neonatal circumcision does not protect against cancer]. ''BMJ'' 1996;312(7033):779-80.</ref> | ||
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Epidemiological studies disproved Wolbarst's myths long ago. In North America the rate of penile cancer has been estimated to be 1 in 100,000<ref>Cutler SJ, Young JL Jr. ''Third national cancer survey: incidence data''. Bethesda, Md. US Dept of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service, 1975</ref>. Maden ''et al'' (1993) reported penile cancer among a fifth of elderly patients from rural areas who had been circumcised neonatally and had been born at a time when the rate of neonatal circumcision was about 20% in rural populations.<ref>Maden C, Sherman KJ, Beckman AM, Hislop TG, Teh CZ, Ashley RL, ''et al''. History of circumcision, medical conditions, and sexual activity and risk of penile cancer. ''JNCI'' 1993;85:19-24</ref> Their study also shows that the rate of penile cancer among men circumcised neonatally has risen in the United States relative to the rise in the rate of neonatal circumcision. | Epidemiological studies disproved Wolbarst's myths long ago. In North America the rate of penile cancer has been estimated to be 1 in 100,000<ref>Cutler SJ, Young JL Jr. ''Third national cancer survey: incidence data''. Bethesda, Md. US Dept of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service, 1975</ref>. Maden ''et al'' (1993) reported penile cancer among a fifth of elderly patients from rural areas who had been circumcised neonatally and had been born at a time when the rate of neonatal circumcision was about 20% in rural populations.<ref>Maden C, Sherman KJ, Beckman AM, Hislop TG, Teh CZ, Ashley RL, ''et al''. History of circumcision, medical conditions, and sexual activity and risk of penile cancer. ''JNCI'' 1993;85:19-24</ref> Their study also shows that the rate of penile cancer among men circumcised neonatally has risen in the United States relative to the rise in the rate of neonatal circumcision. | ||
Although Wolbarst's falsehoods were disproved decades ago, they had entered into the American psyche where they continue to exert influence that they do not deserve.<ref name="hill2000">{{REFjournal | |||
|last=Hill | |||
|first=George | |||
|author-link=George Hill | |||
|etal=no | |||
|title=The Ghosts of Abraham Wolbarst and Aaron Fink | |||
|trans-title= | |||
|language= | |||
|journal=BMJ | |||
|location= | |||
|date=2000-06-22 | |||
|volume= | |||
|issue= | |||
|pages= | |||
|url=https://www.bmj.com/rapid-response/2011/10/28/ghosts-abraham-wolbarst-and-aaron-fink | |||
|quote= | |||
|pubmedID= | |||
|pubmedCID= | |||
|DOI=https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.320.7249.1592 | |||
|accessdate=2020-03-31 | |||
}}</ref> | |||
{{SEEALSO}} | {{SEEALSO}} | ||