License to cut and kill practice: a case report on botched circumcision in Mthatha region of South Africa

Abstract

The objective of this letter is to highlight the problem of deaths related with traditional circumcisions in the Mthatha region of South Africa. Mr. XY, a schoolboy, died as a result of traditional circumcision. He went to a traditional surgeon for circumcision, and paid him for doing it. At the autopsy, a ligature mark was visible in the gangrenous penis. The lungs were edematous, and pus was oozing out on compression of the lungs. Other internal organs were congested and edematous. The cause of death was septicemia as a result of gangrene of the penis. Death related with traditional circumcision is unacceptable and both the way it is practiced and legislation governing it need to be addressed urgently.