A man’s penis is covered with a hood of skin that is called foreskin or prepuce. In cases where the layer of foreskin is too tight to be normally pulled back and forth is called phimosis.
If the condition of phimosis is very mild, the person may not face any major difficulty in day to day life. However, if the condition starts getting severe with time, it gives rise to various problematic symptoms.
The common symptoms of phimosis may look like:
- Severe pain and redness around the penis
- Expansion of the foreskin like a balloon while passing urine
- Inflammation of the foreskin or the glans penis
- Formation of a white ring on the penis
- Painful erection and pain while sex
A person suffering these symptoms might continue to suffer silently due to the stigma and embarrassment around penile problems. But, you must know that like any other health issue, penile problems like phimosis are quite common. Also, it is not a condition that you can take casually and not seek medical help without any worries. Medical intervention for phimosis is highly necessary otherwise the condition can cause other undesired complications.
Let’s gain an insight into the complications that can arise due to phimosis
- Paraphimosis– If you have a tight foreskin and you try to retract your foreskin, there is a high risk of the foreskin getting stuck. This foreskin then forms a ring around the penis and the condition is known as paraphimosis. This is an emergency issue that needs immediate attention from the doctor. The tight ring can obstruct the blood supply to the penis and if left unattended, this may lead to necrosis and gangrene(death of tissues) in the penis. In severe cases, this may even require surgical removal of the penis.
- Problems during sexual activities- Another common problem with phimosis is painful sex and reduced sexual pleasure. Erections and sexual intercourse with a tight foreskin can be quite painful. In addition to this, the inability to retract the foreskin can lead to reduced sexual pleasure since male sexual pleasure is mostly dependent upon the glans penis rubbing against the walls of the vagina.
- Balanitis and Balanoposthitis (inflammatory conditions of the penis)- It is comparatively much more difficult to maintain the hygiene of the penis in the case of too-tight foreskin because the foreskin cannot be retracted properly. Thus, the dark and moist area under the foreskin can act as a harboring ground for a wide variety of microbes. This can lead to inflammation of the glans penis(balanitis), the foreskin(posthitis), or even both(balanoposthitis). These conditions are usually quite painful as well as troublesome and may disrupt your normal life.
- Restriction of the urinary system- The difficulty in keeping the area under the foreskin clean can also result in frequent and recurrent urinary tract infections. In such a case, you may have to endure a number of urinary problems like burning sensation while peeing, frequent urge to urinate, and the inability to empty the bladder at once.
- Increased risk of penile cancer- Although penile cancer is rare, phimosis can act as a major risk factor for the development of penile cancer. The exact relationship between tight foreskin condition and penile cancer is not known, but experts believe that it can be attributed to the buildup of smegma. Smegma is a white, thick, and foul-smelling fluid that forms up in many cases of phimosis. This may contain certain compounds that can contribute to the development of cancer in the penis.
What is the treatment for phimosis?
The best-suited treatment option for you depends upon the diagnosis of the severity of the condition. For phimosis at an early stage, just adopting good hygiene practices may suffice. Additionally, you can ask your doctor to prescribe steroidal creams and ointments. These ointments loosen the foreskin and are effective in a great percentage of mild cases.
However, if the condition of the tight foreskin in your case is severe, non-surgical treatments may not help. In such a situation, undergoing surgery is the best option. The surgical treatment for phimosis is medical circumcision.
Circumcision for permanent relief from phimosis
Circumcision is a preventive as well as a treatment procedure for phimosis and other foreskin issues. In this procedure, the surgeon removes the foreskin from the penis surgically, thereby resolving the problem.
Earlier, the most widely used technique for circumcision was open surgery. In open circumcision, the surgeon makes major incisions along the length of the foreskin and then removes it. Open circumcision is quite complex and can result in some complications. But with the advancements in technology, safer procedures like laser circumcision have come into existence.
Laser circumcision is a modern circumcision procedure in which the surgeon uses a beam of high-intensity laser energy to remove the foreskin.
Advantages of laser circumcision
Unlike open surgery, laser circumcision does not inflict any pain at all. It requires no cuts or stitches and leaves behind no scars. The procedure does not involve any bleeding and is 100% safe.
Moreover, laser circumcision is a daycare surgery. You can go back home on the same day and the recovery is also very fast. Just follow your doctor’s instructions and you’ll be good to go back to your routine life in less than a week.
The numerous advantages of laser circumcision make it the best option for people in Delhi and other metro cities of India. A number of hospitals offer this surgery nowadays.
One such reliable health care provider offering the modern laser-based treatment for phimosis in Delhi and other major Indian cities is Pristyn Care. They are one of the leading healthcare providers in the country and are associated with the best urologists and hospitals in India. You can easily consult one of their specialists and say goodbye to problematic tight foreskin once and for all.
Take Away
Now that you are aware of the complications that phimosis can lead to, leaving it untreated won’t be an option anymore. Also, modern treatment is absolutely pain-free. So, undergoing laser circumcision to get riddance from phimosis is the perfect choice you could make. Just reach out to a urologist soon and put an end to days of worries,
