What should you do if you think something doesn't seem right with the Brit Milah?
A Brit Milah is considered an extremely safe surgical procedure.
Like any surgical procedure, there can be complications. Fortunately, the vast majority of these complications are minor and either resolve on their own without any intervention whatsoever or with simple treatment. An example of this may be the start of some bleeding which can simply be resolved with a bandage to the area.
Regardless of what the problem is, your first point of call should always be your Mohel. Your Mohel is highly trained to deal with any issues or complications. Again, most of these are minor and of no consequence at all, however frightening they may be to you as a parent.
Your Mohel will have checked on the baby after the Brit Milah to make sure that he is happy and that everything is ok and that the bleeding has sufficiently stopped. Before leaving the location of the ceremony, he will have given you his contact details. Please do not hesitate to call your Mohel if you have any concerns.
If you do call the Mohel, you will find that most problems can simply be sorted out with telephonic advice from the Mohel. If the Mohel feels that it cannot be resolved over the telephone, he will arrange to see the baby.
If your Mohel is not immediately available, he will usually have a deputy covering on his behalf. Please contact the deputy (locum) in this case. If, for whatever reason, you are unable to get hold of either, then please proceed to your local hospital casualty or GP/Paediatrician to get a medical opinion.
Thankfully, most of the time, the complication will have resolved without consequence.
If you are worried about something, but it is not an emergency, then consider waiting for the follow-up visit or phone-call with the Mohel to discuss it with him. Your Mohel will have booked a follow-up visit with you to check on the wound, as well as to answer any further questions you may have.
In the unlikely event that the Mohel cannot handle a problem with the Brit Milah, he will refer you to the appropriate medical specialist for an opinion. This specialist will usually be a Urologist or Paediatric Surgeon.
What are some of the possible complications?
Bleeding
The most common complication of a Brit Milah is bleeding. Every Brit Milah can be expected to bleed a little as it is a surgical incision, however some do bleed more than usual. This bleeding can usually be controlled by following advice from your Mohel on how to re-bandage the wound. Some cases may require your Mohel to see the bleeding for himself. It is rare to have bleeding that requires anything more than a re-bandage. In severe cases the Mohel may need to refer you to a medical professional.
Infections
The next most common complication would be an infection. These are almost always mild and resolve spontaneously. A severe complication occurs in less than 0.005% of cases in Africa. [1]
Other complications do exist, and range from mild to severe. They are, however, incredibly rare.