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Basically, according to the values of medical ethics, the patient has a right of self-determination. In the case of minors, this right is usually exercised by the legal guardians on their behalf, but may only be used for the benefit of the child. An operation that is not medically indicated, such as [[circumcision]], is therefore not within the sphere of influence of [[parental rights]].<refname="aap1995">{{REFjournal

}}</ref>  The doctors themselves are not allowed to carry out an operation that is not medically indicated if the "patient" — in this case a child who is unable to give consent — cannot give his or her consent. In this case, there would be criminal acts against the child due to unauthorized bodily harm and infliction of damage. === Mininum age for non-therapeutic circumcision ===Medical ethics has long recognized that surrogates have only a limited power to consent for others. That consent must be limited to the diagnosis and treatment of disease.<ref name="aap1995" /> The authority of surrogates to grant consent for non-therapeutic circumcision of children has long been questioned.<ref name="hill2003">{{REFjournal |last=Hill |first= |init=G |author-link=George Hill |title=Can anyone authorize the nontherapeutic permanent alteration of a child's body? |journal=The American Journal of Bioethics |date=2003 |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=16-8 |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/article/44133 |quote= |pubmedID=14635628 |pubmedCID= |DOI=10.1162/152651603766436342 |accessdate=2023-05-24}}</ref> Two ethicists, Myers & Earp (2020), have conducted a detailed review and analysis of the claimed medical benefits of non-therapeutic [[circumcision]]. They have determined that the alleged benefits are not material, so they do not support granting of consent by a surrogate. Moreover, they comment that even the most perfectly executed surgery produces [[trauma]] and harm to the patient. Circumcision also produces tissue loss and loss of function, therefore, circumcision should be performed only after the individual reaches the age of consent and grants consent.<ref name="myers2020">{{REFjournal |last=Myers |first= |init=A |author-link=Alex Myers |last2=Earp |first2= |init2=BD |author2-link=Brian D. Earp |etal=no |title=What is the best age to circumcise? A medical and ethical analysis |trans-title= |language= |journal=J Biosoc Sci |location= |date=2020-09 |volume=34 |issue=7 |pages=560-72 |url=https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Brian-Earp-2/publication/337720859_What_Is_the_Best_Age_to_Circumcise_A_Medical_and_Ethical_Analysis/links/5f815f61a6fdccfd7b555395/What-Is-the-Best-Age-to-Circumcise-A-Medical-and-Ethical-Analysis.pdf |archived= |quote= |pubmedID=32068898 |pubmedCID= |DOI=10.1111/bioe.12714 |format=PDF |accessdate=2023-05-23}}</ref> Consent by a surrogate for a non-therapeutic circumcision is an unethical practice. Moreover, in addition to being unethical, Adler (2013) argued strongly that child circumcision is unlawful, <ref name="adler2013">{{REFjournal |last=Adler |first=Peter W. |init=PW |author-link=Peter W. Adler |title=Is circumcision legal? |journal=Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest |date=2013 |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=439-86 |url=https://scholarship.richmond.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1265&context=jolpi |format=PDF |accessdate=2020-05-08}}</ref> so non-therapeutic circumcision of boys is likely to be declared unlawful by a court.