Faudzil @ Ajak

Faudzil @ Ajak
Always think how to do things differently. - Faudzil Harun@Ajak

5 June 2013

HEALTH - The 'elastic band' circumcision device that could reduce HIV infection rate by 60%















The 'elastic band' circumcision device that could reduce 

HIV infection rate by 60%


  • The World Health Organisation has approved the PrePex device for use
  • It works by using an elastic band to cut off the blood supply to the foreskin
  • This causes it to die, meaning it falls off or can be cut away painlessly
  • Takes two nurses four minutes to apply and doesn't need sterile conditions
  • Is hoped PrePex will slow the spread of HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Men who are circumcised are around 60% less likely to become infected



A new method of carrying out male circumcision without the need for surgery has been approved by the World Health Organisation.

The PrePex circumcision device uses an elastic band to cut off the blood supply to the foreskin until it dies and falls off, or can be cut off painlessly.

It is hoped the device will help to reduce the spread of HIV in Africa because being circumcised reduces a heterosexual man’s risk of becoming infected by 60 per cent.


The PrePex device works by using an elastic band to cut off the blood supply to the foreskin which causes it to die meaning it falls off, or can be cut away painlessly. It takes two nurses just four minutes to fit the device
The PrePex device works by using an elastic band to cut off the blood supply to the foreskin which causes it to die meaning it falls off, or can be cut away painlessly. It takes two nurses just four minutes to fit the device


The technique does not require a general anaesthetic and is believed to be safer than surgery.

The New York Times reports that the device can be put in place by two nurses who require little training, it only takes four minutes to apply, it is disposable, and there is no need for sterile conditions.

It is also cheap compared to surgery and the device is easy to ship and store.

The manufacturer also claims there are no needles involved and no loss of blood, the patient can return immediately to their daily routine, and it does not require the use of unsightly stitches or sutures.

    Circ MedTech, the social enterprise that created PrePex, claims that 25 million people have already died of AIDS and that another two million people are infected every year.

    In 2007, the WHO reported that male circumcision in high risk parts of African can reduce the risk of HIV infection by 60 per cent.

    The reason for this is that the foreskin acts as HIV’s main entry point to the body during penetrative sex between an uninfected man and an HIV-infected person. 

    This is because the inner surface of the foreskin contains a higher proportion of the cells that HIV targets, such as T-cells.


    It is hoped that the device will slow the spread of HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa as heterosexual men in high-risk areas are 60 per cent less likely to become infected if they are circumcised
    It is hoped that the device will slow the spread of HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa as heterosexual men in high-risk areas are 60 per cent less likely to become infected if they are circumcised


    It also has less keratin, a protein found in the skin, which has a protective effect.

    Circumcision can also reduce the likelihood of genital ulcers, which increase HIV risk by creating a break in the skin through which the virus can enter the body. 

    In addition, any small tears in the foreskin that occur during sex make it much easier for the virus to enter the body.
    However, surgical circumcision requires surgeons working in sterile surgical conditions – something which is often not available in the parts of Sub-Saharan Africa where HIV is most prevalent.

    In 2011 UNAIDS, the US Government, the WHO, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and the World Bank launched an action plan to carry out 20 million voluntary circumcisions by 2015.

    They believe this will save 3.4 million lives and US$16.5 billion in long term healthcare costs.
    Circ MedTech believes that the PrePex offers a ‘safe, simple and scalable’ way of achieving this goal.


    Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2335070/New-non-surgical-male-circumcision-device-reduce-HIV-infection-rate-60.html#ixzz2VLBbD04R
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