This operation is a very simple one, which, if done properly, can be quite painless. However, it is often painful, yet still performed by some without anesthesia, either on the absurd assumption that infants do not feel pain or that the use of general anesthesia is risky for the child. While general anesthesia may be too risky, a local anesthetic is less problematic.

Not all males undergo circumcision. It is done primarily for religious and cultural reasons. Jews and Muslims have their male children circumcised in a religious ceremony that has been handed down through the centuries. In earlier times it may have been a way to distinguish and separate Jews from other people, but today circumcision is a common procedure throughout the world and across many religions.

The secondary reason for circumcision is related to hygiene. Removal of the foreskin is said to help prevent the build up of a white, cheesy secretion that can possibly lead to irritation, infection, or offensive odor. This substance, called smegma, is a natural secretion from the glands in the coronal area of the penis and can accumulate under the foreskin of an uncircumcised penis. However, this accumulation can easily be avoided simply by moving the foreskin back and washing the area daily. Thus, circumcision, although not dangerous, can seem like a rather extreme remedy purely for the avoidance of smegma. Perhaps this custom has persisted because it has been suggested that smegma may be responsible for transferring a virus that may encourage cervical cancer. Although the rate of cancer of the cervix has been shown by some researchers to be considerably lower in the spouses of circumcised men, it is not certain that this is a cause-effect relationship. In any event, uncircumcised men who practice routine hygienic care (as well as their partners) are unlikely to be at any major health risk. Many parents who recognize that there is apparently no medical advantage to circumcision are now choosing not to have their sons circumcised.