I have a question about circumsision?

Question

As my son is now 6 years old, I havent helped him bathe in awhile. He is pretty self dependent. He had a doctors appointment the other day. My husband had to help him clean for a urine sample. He said he has a lot of skin still covers some of the head of his penis. My son has complained since he was younger that he was sensitive down there. Could he have not gotten enough cut off as a infant? Will this grow out as he gets older?

Answer 1

Yes, it will grow out as he gets older. The proportion of the left over skin will never keep up with the growth of his organ, so by the time it will matter, he will have out grown this problem. You do have to refresh his memory from time to time to take a little extra effort to move the skin back as he washes. This is critical practice and one that boys his age could use a reminder to accomplish.

Answer 2

Circumcision can involve some or all of the loose foreskin around the tip of the penis. If your son has already undergone a circumcision and has a problem due to the remaining amount of foreskin, there is still the possibility of doing a revision of the previous procedure. The position of the edge of the foreskin relative to the glans penis doesn't change over time, but it is possible for the line of scar around the edge of the foreskin to become dense or thick, or even to contract.

There are several reasons why a revision of circumcision might be warranted. The first is hygine. If his discomfort is the result of a chronic inflammatory condition resulting from candida living under the skin flap (a condtion termed "balanitis") and if cleanliness is made too difficult by the presence of the skin (a judgment call - no right or wrong answer here) then revision of the skin flap could be of help. Another reason that circumcision might be in order is termed "phimosis". This is where the opening into the ring of foreskin is too tight, and it cannot be retracted safely. Two things can happen here. First of all, the difficulty in cleaning under a phimotic foreskin leads to chronic balanitis and the creation of adhesions - thin films of scar that cross the gap from foreskin to glans penis. Adhesions make foreskin retraction painful or impossible and they help harbor balanitis. The second consequence of phimosis is a complication known as "paraphimosis". In this condition, the tight foreskin DOES retract below the tip of the penis, but it's too tight to go back, and it becomes a tourniquet, cutting off blood flow. Paraphimosis is a surgical emergency.

Have your son seen by a qualified doctor - preferrably his pediatrician, and ask the specific question about your concern regarding the foreskin. He or she will examine for balanitis, adhesions, and phimosis. Typically, pediatricians are not aggressive about recommending surgeries, and rightly so. A six year old boy may not be in the right phase of life to undergo an elective procedure on his penis without suffering undue psychological stress.

If there are no indications for surgery the pediatrician will report it as such. If there are signs that the foreskin is a bit of a problem, they'll recommend attentive cleaning and a follow up visit. If they see a phimosis, though, they'll probably just recommend a referral to a pediatric urologist for a surgical opinion.

Whatever your doctor recommends, ask them to describe specifically what they see, and why they decide what they decide. Doctors are supposed to be able to explain themselves perfectly clearly! Part of the job is to be a teacher.

I hope that helps.

Answer 3

People are either circumsised out of religious believes (Jewish males are circumsised) or for other reasons such as parents preferences or person preferences. The only difference between the two are that it's cleaner than uncircumsized and esthetically more pleasing to most women.

Answer 4

It is unfortunate that you chose to circumcise him at all, but, please, please, let him keep what little is left - it will make "restoration" easier when he is an adult. (See website below.)

He is old enough to be really upset, angry, and resentful for life if you put him through this totally sadistic and unnecessary procedure now. He can keep clean just fine - his father can teach him, as he's too old to want you messing with his privates. If he's already sensitive there, further surgery will make it worse, not better. The foreskin protects the unerect glans from unwanted rubbing, etc.

More than 85% of the men in the world are uncircumcised, and we muddle through just fine. Leave him as he is.

Answer 5

as a resident, when we were on the OB service, we had to do the circ's. It was see one, do one, teach one...some of us picked it up really quickly and some didn't. one girl on my rotation cut too much and it wasn't pretty...
so, yes, he may have not had the proper amount removed (what is the proper amount?...well that is what you think is enough and still get the job done...
any way, yes, your young-un may not have had enough removed...the other think to address is: was the extra skin attached to the penis (it may be scar tissue) so it would be a good idea to check to see if that extra skin moves freely..if it doesn't move freely, this could be painful when he gets an erection because this skin may not let the penis grow to it's erect state and he may have pain...it may have to be removed or modified so that it will move freely...
it may or may not grow out as he gets older...presumably it will grow as do the other parts of the body, but if it is a scar tissue, it may just stay adhered to the glans.

Answer 6

Circumcision of an adult can be more precise and less risky than for the infant. This is because the adult penis is fully formed. Many plastic surgeons operate on the penis in the erect state because this way it is clear to what extent the skin is stretched during erection. In the infant, this more precise method cannot be employed.

ref:
http://www.cirp.org/library/anatomy/garcia/
Read the above article

Another useful article is at:
http://www.circlist.com/styles/style.html

But, I recommend to consult a doc, as it is a sensitive issue.

All the best

Regards

Ramesh
The Human Search Engine
All U Wanted

Answer 7

I would have thought he'd be fine unless he has trouble urinating. My brother was circumcised as a toddler as he had too much fore skin, the only reason he needed the circumcistion was because (as I said) it causes trouble when going to the loo! Foreskin covering the head of the penis is completely normal btw, but if your concerned check with a doctor!

Answer 8

Sounds as though the circumcision wasn't thorough enough. You probably don't want to hear this, but you should make an appointment with the pediatrician and have him check. The last thing you want is for your son to have any problems as he grows up. My understanding is that the older a male gets, the difficulty level for these kind of procedures is greater and harder to recover from. Good Luck.

Answer 9

it will not grow out as you said.. as he grows and his lil penis grows so will the skin.. it is always going to cover it.. and really for health issues should be cut.. it is a really easy surgery with minimal recovery.. i would get it done sooner tho than later.. for cleanliness issues. it should have been cut off as an infant but then that was your responsibility to have it done.. the dr.'s wont just say ok.. come in for this and we will do it. his sensitivity will only get worse so i would suggest getting it taken care of soon hun.. i have done the procedure on adults who complain of serious pain as an adult..

Answer 10

These are questions you need to ask your doctor as only he knows what your sons penis and circumcision looks like.