Two months after an Israeli study found that 1/3 of all neonatal herpes cases in Israel come from circumcisions done with metzitzah b'peh (MBP), the direct mouth-to-bloody-penis-sucking done by many mohels after removing the baby's foreskin, Israel's haredi chief rabbis urged mohels to use a sterile tube, not their mouths, to do the procedure.
Last week, more than two months after an Israeli study found that 1/3 of all neonatal herpes cases in Israel come from circumcisions done with metzitzah b'peh (MBP), the direct mouth-to-bloody-penis-sucking done by many mohels after removing the baby's foreskin, Israel's state haredi chief rabbis ordered the country's mohels to use a sterile tube to perform metzitzah, oral suction, rather than placing their mouths directly on the baby's penis, Ma'ariv reported.
(The actual percentage of babies infected through MBP is probably even higher, because of under-reporting encouraged by haredi leaders.)
Neonatal herpes can cause brain damage and even death. Another Israeli study released recently indicates that the negative results of neonatal herpes may be able manifest even years after the initial infection.
Related Posts:
New MBP Study Indicates MBP-Transmitted Neonatal Herpes May Have Delayed Negative Impact.
New MBP Study Shows 1/3 Of All Neonatal Herpes Cases In Israel Come From MBP.