What are the symptoms of foreskin?

The main manifestation of prepuce is that the foreskin completely covers the glans penis or urethral opening, which may be accompanied by symptoms such as smegma accumulation, abnormal urination, and repeated infections. Excessive foreskin is usually caused by congenital developmental abnormalities, local inflammatory stimulation, traumatic scars and other factors. Some patients may develop emergencies such as foreskin incarceration.

1. Abnormal foreskin coverage

When the penis is weak or erect, the foreskin completely wraps the glans penis and cannot be exposed, and some patients can only barely turn it up. This situation may make cleaning difficult, and smegma may easily form between the inner plate of the foreskin and the glans penis, and long-term irritation may induce balanitis. Physiological phimosis is common in infants and young children. If the glans cannot be exposed after puberty, it needs to be evaluated.

2. Abnormal urination

People with preputial orifice stenosis may experience symptoms such as thin urine lines, bifurcated urination, and dribbling urine. In severe cases, it may cause an increase in residual urine volume in the bladder. In children, the foreskin may bulge like a balloon when urinating, and there may be residual urine after urination. This condition is related to the stenosis of the annulus fibrosus distal to the foreskin, which may increase the probability of urinary tract infection.

3. Repeated infections

Excessive foreskin is prone to secondary foreskin balanitis, which manifests as local redness, swelling, pain, increased secretions, and in severe cases, ulcers or purulent exudation. Candida albicans and Streptococcus are common pathogens. Recurrent infections may form scarring phimosis. Patients can use clotrimazole cream, mupirocin ointment and other drugs to control the infection, but radical cure requires surgical correction.

4. Sexual dysfunction

Adult patients may suffer from problems such as erection pain and difficulty in intercourse due to insufficient foreskin mobility that affects their sexual life. Long-term wrapping may cause abnormal sensitivity of the glans penis, and some patients require an adaptation period after circumcision. This condition is related to a short foreskin frenulum or chronic inflammatory stimulation.

5. Foreskin incarceration

Implantation may occur if the foreskin is not reset in time after forcibly turning up the foreskin, which is manifested as the foreskin ring being stuck in the coronal sulcus, causing swelling of the glans penis and severe pain. This is a urological emergency and requires immediate manual reduction or surgical release, otherwise it may cause ischemic necrosis of the glans penis. Incarceration often occurs in patients with stenosis of the foreskin opening accompanied by inflammation and edema.

You should pay attention to the cleanliness of the perineum every day, gently clean the smegma every day, and avoid violent turning of the foreskin. Parents of pediatric patients are advised to observe their urination. If phimosis persists after puberty, they should seek medical evaluation promptly. If infections occur repeatedly in adult patients or their quality of life is affected, surgical treatments such as circumcision may be considered. The wound needs to be kept dry and reviewed regularly after surgery. The diet should be light and spicy foods should be avoided to aggravate the local inflammatory reaction.