Phimosis and its symptoms
- What is phimosis?
- Complications of phimosis: Paraphimosis
- Surgical intervention to relieve or prevent symptoms of phimosis
- Phimosis is a male-only problem that can cause unpleasant symptoms in both boys and adults.
- To avoid the symptoms of phimosis and possible complications such as paraphimosis, the best option is to have a phimosis operation or circumcision.
- Phimosis surgery to relieve symptoms or prevent them is the recommended treatment and one of the most common interventions in the field of urology.
What is phimosis?
Phimosis is a medical problem exclusive to the male sex that mainly affects boys, with phimosis surgery being very common in the first 10 years of life. Despite this, it is not a problem exclusive to boys, as it is possible to suffer from phimosis as an adult.
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To determine if a man is suffering from phimosis there are several symptoms that indicate it. Below you can find the symptoms of phimosis:
- Difficult foreskin retraction: In this case, during sexual intercourse, masturbation or cleaning, the patient cannot retract the foreskin all the way down easily and may even experience pain when doing so.
- Sensation of tension during erection: This sensation of tension during erection is due to the fact that the difficulty in retracting the foreskin, together with the frenulum in many cases, seems to squeeze the glans area and there may even be a sensation of tearing. Sometimes this symptom of phimosis can cause the frenulum to break during sexual intercourse and the consequent need for emergency medical attention.
- Inflammation of the foreskin during urination: As this symptom indicates, during urination the foreskin becomes inflamed and causes itching or stinging.
- Urinary stream is difficult or thin and deviated: Due to the pressure exerted by the foreskin on the glans penis or blockage of the urethral outlet, it may be difficult to direct the urinary stream when urinating.
- Inflammation of the glans and foreskin is common: This inflammation and even infection of the glans or foreskin is mainly due to poor hygiene due to another characteristic symptom of phimosis, which is the impossibility of complete retraction of the glans.
- Whitish residue on the glans: The appearance of whitish residue on the glans is common due to poor hygiene caused by the difficulty in retracting the foreskin.
Complications of phimosis: Paraphimosis
Paraphimosis is a possible symptom following phimosis or a complication of phimosis. In paraphimosis, the skin of the foreskin retracts violently under the glans penis, making it almost impossible to reposition.
This can cause the pressure exerted by the foreskin in the area to cause blood flow problems in the glans causing symptoms such as oedema or intense pain in the area as well as other additional symptoms:
- Discolouration at the tip of the glans penis
- High fever for no apparent reason
- Inability to place the foreskin in its usual place
- Difficulty urinating or ejaculating
With regard to these symptoms of paraphimosis, it is very important to see a specialist as soon as possible as emergency intervention may be necessary to avoid further problems.
In order to avoid all these complications, the main recommendation if you suffer from any of the symptoms related to phimosis that we have mentioned in the previous section is to decide to have a phimosis or circumcision operation. It is a fairly simple operation, always in the hands of a professional urologist of course, which does not take long and whose recovery is simple as long as all the recommendations made by the specialist are carried out.
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Surgical intervention to relieve or prevent symptoms of phimosis
Phimosis surgery is performed under local anaesthesia, i.e. only the area of the penis is numbed. Under this type of anaesthesia, the patient will feel that the penis is being manipulated but will not feel any pain.
During the phimosis surgery, the surgeon will cut off part of the excess foreskin and in some cases will even cut the frenulum to avoid tightness by freeing the glans penis. Once this has been done, the necessary sutures and dressing will be applied.
Phimosis surgery is a very quick treatment, usually lasting no more than 30 minutes from the time you enter the operating theatre until the time you leave, and the long-term results are very good.
The patient is discharged the same day of the operation after receiving the necessary instructions for the care of the stitches. The postoperative period for phimosis surgery lasts just over 14 days, and it is advisable not to have sexual relations for 3 or 4 weeks after the operation.
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Medical disclaimer: All the published content in Operarme is intended to disseminate reliable medical information to the general public, and is reviewed by healthcare professionals. In any case should this information be used to perform a diagnosis, indicate a treatment, or replace the medical assessment of a professional in a face to face consultation. Find more information in the links below:
