Moms of most babies experience phimosis in boys. What it is? This anomaly occurs due to the fact that the head and foreskin of the penis are fused during the first few years of life.
In adults, there are a number of risk factors and causes of phimosis. Although it becomes a problem only if various symptoms appear. Phimosis in boys, what is it? How dangerous is this? How to treat phimosis at home? You can understand and get answers to these questions in this article.
Definition
The formation of the penis begins at 7 weeks of gestation and ends at the seventeenth. The skin of the penis in front folds, forming the foreskin. It covers the penis, head and urinary canal. The foreskin performs many functions: protective, immune and erogenous.
Phimosis is a condition in which boys, adolescents, or men cannot fully pull the foreskin over the entire head of the penis. In other words, the opening of the foreskin is too narrow to fully expose the head of the penis. This anomaly sometimes has a much deeper effect on the life of a man than just an anatomical feature. For many members of the stronger sex, phimosis becomes a constant source of awkwardness in an intimate sense.
Classification
Phimosis according to ICD-10 (international classification of diseases) has the code N47 “Excessive foreskin, phimosis and paraphimosis”.
Doctors distinguish between two types of disease:
- Physiological phimosis is a situation in which it is impossible to move the foreskin. This condition does not cause pain when urinating. Urinary tract infections usually also do not occur in these situations. At what age is physiological phimosis common in boys? Mostly up to 3 years. Physiological phimosis does not require surgical correction.
- Pathological phimosis is an excess of the foreskin that occurs due to the formation of scar tissue. The disease is often associated with inflammation of the glans penis (balanitis), chronic inflammation of the skin of the genital organs (scleroatrophic lichen). With pathological phimosis, surgery is necessary, in particular, circumcision.
Diagnosis of phimosis
Which doctor should you go to if you suspect your child has phimosis? For a physical examination and diagnosis, parents need to visit a pediatric urologist and pediatrician. It should be noted that with phimosis, treatment is not always necessary. Often at birth, the foreskin in boys is fused to the glans penis. This condition usually goes away without treatment at the age of 5 to 18 years.
Symptoms
When phimosis appears, a person pays attention to the narrowing of the foreskin of the penis. In addition, the following symptoms may appear:
- penis pain
- pain during intercourse,
- erectile disfunction,
- painful erections
- difficulty urinating
- dysuria (violation of urination),
- skin ulcers
- urethral pruritus.
- chronic irritation
- bleeding,
- recurrent foreskin infections.
- urinary tract infection
- burning,
- pain and pressure in the lower abdomen and back.
Causes
Phimosis in boys. What it is? When the foreskin of the penis in 96% of newborn boys is fused with the penis, this condition is called physiological phimosis. As the child grows, it naturally separates from the glans penis. In some boys, the foreskin does not separate. The cause of such cases is not known.
Pathological phimosis in adolescents can occur in the following cases:
- infections
- scarring,
- adhesion (sticking / fusion),
- mechanical damage to the foreskin,
- inflammation and swelling.
Risk factor
The disease is more common in boys. But sometimes you can detect phimosis in adolescents and even in the elderly.
The risk factors for the onset of the disease include:
- injuries
- bacterial infections, such as balanitis;
- poor hygiene.
The occurrence of these diseases can be associated with stagnation of smegma and urine in the penis due to phimosis or lack of proper hygiene. With untimely treatment, balanitis and balanoposthitis lead to the formation of painful scar tissue of the foreskin, as well as premature impotence.
Treatment
What to do with phimosis? Parents are often preoccupied and overly concerned about this issue. If the boy has a physiological variety of the disease, treatment is not required. Proper hygiene and observation are the most correct tactics. If redness, inflammation, pain or urination is impaired, consult a doctor. In such cases, it is advisable to prescribe hormonal drugs. Usually this treatment is enough.
With pathological phimosis, often the only way to solve the problem is circumcision. The use of hormonal creams can only help with mild scarring.
How to choose a phimosis treatment?
Regardless of the type of disease or pathology, it is important to always consult a doctor for proper diagnosis. Too often, people neglect their condition by delaying hospital visits.
Phimosis is a condition that may worsen over time. Waiting and delaying the diagnosis can aggravate the problem, as it progresses to extreme cases of paraphimosis (infringement of the glans penis). Uncontrolled treatment of phimosis at home can have the opposite result. The formation of a dense ring of the epidermis, inflammation, infection contribute to the worsening of the situation. The choice of treatment is carried out only by a specialist after a full-time consultation and examination of the patient.
Parents should never try to pull and pull the foreskin. This can be very painful for their child. Such manipulations can also lead to injuries, scarring. As a result, the movement of the foreskin will become even more difficult, and the disease will turn into a pathological form.
In the first few years of life there is no need to completely push the foreskin of the boy. It is enough to rinse the penis from the outside. Foreign objects, such as ear sticks, cotton pads or tampons, should not be used to clean the space between the penis and foreskin.
In the absence of unpleasant symptoms and problems with the penis, phimosis in a boy under 3 years of age should not bother parents. The need for treatment depends on the age of the child, the degree of phimosis and its causes.
Drug therapy
The standard drug treatment for phimosis at home is the use of steroid ointments or creams. The corticosteroids contained in such drugs reduce the inflammation that occurs with phimosis. But they should be prescribed by a doctor.
It is worth noting that when using hormonal creams, some side effects may occur, for example:
- cataract,
- osteoporosis,
- hypertension,
- increased blood sugar
- increased susceptibility to infections.
Fortunately, there are many home remedies that can be used as an alternative to steroid creams in combination with exercises.
Stretching
One of the types of non-surgical treatment of phimosis at home is exercises for stretching the foreskin. The purpose of mechanical action on the foreskin is to sufficiently stretch the skin so that it can freely move around the glans penis.
When performing such exercises, you need to have patience and time. Haste in this matter is absolutely unnecessary. Otherwise, you can cause injury, which will significantly worsen the condition of phimosis.
Several aspects of tactics:
- Exercise stimulates tissue growth; in fact, they do not stretch the skin.
- Do not zeal and stretch the foreskin of the appearance of painful sensations.
- Stretching exercises must be performed for 5 minutes in the morning and evening for at least 7 days.
- Whenever you are in the bath, use the opportunity to exercise. When the foreskin is naturally weakened, it is necessary to stretch the skin as far as possible, but so that there is no pain.
- In addition, you should also try to move the foreskin while urinating.
ethnoscience
Along with exercises and the use of medications, the treatment of phimosis without surgery at home includes traditional medicine:
- Cream of chamomile. The use of herbs reduces inflammation and does not have the side effects inherent in hormonal ointments. Studies have shown that chamomile, in addition to anti-inflammatory properties, is as effective as cortisol in steroid preparations. Chamomile lotion or cream must be applied to the foreskin during stretching exercises.
- Calendula cream. Calendula-based preparations are obtained from marigold flower. This plant also has an anti-inflammatory effect.
- Cucumber seed oil. The composition of this oil is enriched with omega fatty acids and linolenic acid. These ingredients have long been known for their beneficial effects on the skin and are used in many cosmetic products. Medicinal oil also replenishes the natural water balance of the skin, smoothes wrinkles, and improves elasticity.
- Sea buckthorn oil. The drug is obtained from buckthorn. Like other oils, this effective herbal product has properties similar to hormones. Sea buckthorn oil is also recommended for quick healing and skin regeneration, which makes it especially useful in the treatment of phimosis. Due to its concentration, the product must be diluted with olive oil.
- Licorice cream is another natural home remedy for phimosis that relieves inflammation.
Key points
When faced with a diagnosis of phimosis, you need to know some key points in the course and treatment of this disease:
- Treatment is not always necessary. Your child can outgrow phimosis without surgery and medication.
- When treating at an early age, therapy gives good results.
- Treatment for paraphimosis is urgent because it restricts blood flow to the penis.
- Circumcision can sometimes help boys who have chronic problems with the foreskin, such as phimosis, recurrent penile infections, or a high risk of urinary tract infections.
- In cases of circumcision with phimosis, recovery is fairly quick.
- In infants, as a rule, recovery after circumcision is much faster than in older children.
Effects
ICD-10 phimosis is anatomical disorders. In this condition, the risk of developing complications is increased, for example:
- balanitis (inflammation of the glans penis),
- balanoposthitis (inflammation of the foreskin).
Prevention
There are ways to reduce the risks of phimosis. These include proper genital hygiene and the partial or complete removal of excess foreskin (circumcision).
Daily washing of the genitals with warm water will help to avoid the occurrence of infectious inflammation.