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Costa Rica

Deep-built

ISO: CRI Region: Latin America

0.15% circumcision prevalence

Prevalence of non-therapeutic male circumcision.

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Research coverage

A transparent snapshot of what this file currently contains.

PrevalenceComplete

Categorical profileComplete

Circumcision by intentComplete

Deep write-upsComplete

Native perspectiveAvailable

Sources · Citations

Verifications · Independent

Structured claims · Evidence-based

Jul 9, 2026

Last updated · deep-built

Research note: Costa Rica DEEP_BUILT 2026-07-12. Morris 2016 PMC4772313: 0.15% (confirmed 3-0), among the LOWEST rates globally. DISTINCTIVE: genuinely a "no tradition, nothing distinctive" case - no sizeable Jewish/Muslim minority, no indigenous circumcision tradition found; circumcision is overwhelmingly therapeutic/elective medical (phimosis etc), NOT routine newborn or ritual. CCSS policy position/pediatric-association statement explicitly sought, NOT found (honest gap). No statute found (not on ARC Law's list). No verified harm case (honest gap). HIV ~0.6% (2023, World Bank/UNAIDS - obtained via WebSearch supplement since the main workflow only surfaced global/regional aggregates). UNREGULATED. NOT VMMC priority. Sources #1470-1477. FIRST of Batch 4 (Central America): Costa Rica/Nicaragua/Panama/El Salvador/Honduras.

Research claims

Short, testable claims backed by evidence and categorised for clarity.

No structured research claims have been added for Costa Rica yet.

Legal status

Unregulated

This research did not locate a Costa Rican statute specifically addressing non-therapeutic male circumcision, and could not verify a specific Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) policy position or pediatric-association statement on routine infant circumcision — both honest gaps. This research did not independently verify Costa Rica's female genital mutilation legal status either. Female genital mutilation is a separate matter and must not be conflated with male circumcision.

Medical & HIV context

0.6%

Adult HIV prevalence

UNAIDS/WB (2023) · Adults 15–49

Circumcision in newborns

Non-therapeutic (cultural practice)

no tradition

Typical age

Benchmarks are international context — not a local complication rate.

Incident registry

No verified incidents are currently recorded for Costa Rica.

This absence should not be read as proof that harm does not occur — only that no verified, sourced case has been documented in this database yet.

Country write-ups

Costa Rica: A Circumcision Rate Driven Entirely by Medicine, Not Tradition

With no significant Jewish or Muslim minority and no cultural circumcision tradition, Costa Rica's near-zero rate reflects a country where the procedure happens only for medical reasons

Dec 1, 2026