Circumcision has a major impact on male reproductive health, affecting the growth and development of the penis during adolescence and possibly causing it to be too short. At present, circumcision can be treated surgically, so at what age should a child be circumcised and what kind of care should be given after surgery? In this regard, Family Doctor Online interviewed Dr. Wang Zhenwei of the Second People’s Hospital of Guangdong Province to answer our questions about how old a boy can be circumcised? How to prevent infection after surgery?
Must circumcision be done for long foreskin or prepuce?
It is not necessary to circumcise the foreskin or prepuce. Circumcision can be done without surgery, but it is recommended if there is a combination of narrow and recurrent glansitis, or if there is a combination of tumors. In addition, circumcision is required, but children under the age of three should be excluded because they may have physiological circumcision, but the symptoms can improve with age. Therefore, we recommend that children younger than three years old can be observed, but older than three years old need to be treated surgically.
At what age is circumcision better?
Circumcision is best done between the ages of 5 and 14, as children are more likely to comply and it will have no effect on their penis development. There are three main types of circumcision, including the traditional hand-sewn foreskin, the triple ring and the anastomosis, and the anastomosis is the main method used in urology, which has the advantage of short operation time, quick recovery and few complications.
How to prevent infection after circumcision?
The methods to prevent infection after circumcision are as follows: after circumcision, the doctor will prescribe antibiotics, benzalkonium chloride or potassium permanganate for soaking, and this soaking should be done after three days of medication change. Within half an hour of the circumcision surgery need to be observed in the hospital; 2-3 days after the circumcision, need to be followed up for a change of medication, after the change of medication need to soak benzalkonium chloride twice a day, 10-15 minutes each time, to prevent infection; parents go back to observe the situation of nails on the foreskin of children, generally nails can fall off within a week to a month, after a month has not fallen off to seek timely medical attention.
Dr. Wang Zhenwei reminded us that as long as the child is still over three years old after the foreskin is too long, this situation can basically rule out the possibility of physiological prepuce, but at this time the child is relatively small, the ability to cooperate is relatively poor, it is not recommended to carry out surgery, you can be between the ages of 5 and 14 years old, through the surgical method of excessively long foreskin cut off.
