FOI reference: FOI-2025-2503
You asked
Please provide data for the number of deaths due to male circumcision in each of the last 20 years.
If possible, please provide the age of the individual and detail whether the circumcision was therapeutic (for medical reasons) or non-therapeutic (for cultural or religious reasons).
We said
Thank you for your request.
We are responsible for the production of mortality statistics for deaths registered in England and Wales. National Records Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) are responsible for statistics pertaining to Scotland and Northern Ireland. They can be contacted at foi@nrscotland.gov.uk and info@nisra.gov.uk.
ONS mortality data is taken from the information provided on death certificates. The death certificate used in England and Wales is compatible with that recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO). It is set out in two parts. Part I gives the condition or sequence of conditions leading directly to death, while Part II gives details of any associated conditions that contributed to the death but are not part of the causal sequence.
When ONS receive the data, we use computer algorithms to apply rules which increase the consistency and improve the international and temporal comparability of mortality statistics. All the conditions mentioned on the death certificate are coded using the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10).
From all of these causes an underlying cause of death is selected using ICD-10 coding rules. The underlying cause of death is defined by WHO as: (a) the disease or injury that initiated the train of events directly leading to death, or (b) the circumstances of the accident or violence that produced the fatal injury.
A death that was caused by circumcision would have as the underlying cause of death, a reference to adverse effect of surgery or something similar. For example, ICD10 code Y83 -- 'Surgical operation and other surgical procedures as the cause of abnormal reaction or complication'.
Along with this code, a code relevant to male circumcision would be mentioned later on the death certificate. Within chapter XXI of the coding classification that relates to patients who have already been treated for a disease or injury, the ICD-10 code Z41.2 relates to both therapeutic and ritual male circumcision.
For deaths registered between 2001 and 2023 in England and Wales, there were no deaths where male circumcision (ICD-10 code Z41.2) was mentioned anywhere on the death certificate.