Cleaning question

[inchwormz]

I have two girls, so never had to worry about cleaning a boy. But I'm gathering information for my sisters, who may very likely have a boy some day. One "issue" they have with an intact penis is cleaning. They think you have to pull it back to regularly clean (which I have already told them is not the case) but how do you clean if any stools end up inside the penis?

I breastfed both my girls and it wasn't uncommon for newborn, liquid stools to sometimes end up around the vagina opening. It was easy enough to stick their bottoms under running water to clean this out, so I didn't end up poking or prodding at them to get them clean. But if you aren't supposed to pull back on the penis and stools get inside, how does one clean this out?

I hope this isn't TMI. I just know it will come up when we discuss how easy it is to clean again (and how it should basically be left alone) so I want to make sure I've covered every angle.

Thanks!

[tutucrazy]

Originally Posted by inchwormz

I have two girls, so never had to worry about cleaning a boy. But I'm gathering information for my sisters, who may very likely have a boy some day. One "issue" they have with an intact penis is cleaning. They think you have to pull it back to regularly clean (which I have already told them is not the case) but how do you clean if any stools end up inside the penis?

I breastfed both my girls and it wasn't uncommon for newborn, liquid stools to sometimes end up around the vagina opening. It was easy enough to stick their bottoms under running water to clean this out, so I didn't end up poking or prodding at them to get them clean. But if you aren't supposed to pull back on the penis and stools get inside, how does one clean this out?

I hope this isn't TMI. I just know it will come up when we discuss how easy it is to clean again (and how it should basically be left alone) so I want to make sure I've covered every angle.

Thanks!

Stool can't get "inside" the penis or foreskin b/c the foreskin is fused to the glans and there is a spincter that holds the foreskin closed tightly and only opens for urination. The actual opening of the foreskin is very very small during infancy and only widens with sexual maturity. It would be much more likely to get poop in a girl's vagina than under a foreskin.

You gently wipe the penis like a finger if it gets poopy. From base to tip so that you don't accidentally retract. Just like for for girls, if the diaper is really messy, rinsing off with water is a good idea.

Here is a thread all about intact care:
http://www.mothering.com/discussions...893&highlight=

[inchwormz]

Originally Posted by tutucrazy

...there is a spincter that holds the foreskin closed tightly and only opens for urination.

Thank you! This I didn't know. So there is no chance that stools (even liquid ones?) can end up inside?

[Pumpkinheadmommy]

Originally Posted by inchwormz

Thank you! This I didn't know. So there is no chance that stools (even liquid ones?) can end up inside?

That's one of the wonderful benefits of keeping baby boys intact. One of the purposes of the foreskin is to protect the glans from feces and other foreign matter at the diaper age. Around the age of 2 or so (not coincidentally about the time the child is getting out of diapers) the foreskin should start loosening up. If he happens to get any flecks of poop in the wrinkles then (like my ds did when he had a bout of diarrhea) you can simply rinse some water over him, probably like you did with your girls. You should never ever force his foreskin back to clean him.

[jessjgh1]

even if some did, which would be hard... the next time the boy peed the urine would flush it all out.

i had a girl after ds... girls are much harder to clean-- for ds it has been really easy.
I did have to change a diaper of a friends ds who was about 2 and circumcised. It was a yucky messy poopy and it was soooooo hard to clean around where he had been cut. The poop just kept getting stuck up around the ridge there.

One usually discovers that anything that is quite messy becomes easier to just wash off in a sink or do an impromptu bath anyways- as you know.
And yes, some doctors used to (or still) tell parents to retract the foreskin to clean, but this was bad information and is not supported today.

Good luck!
Jessica
nak

[jessjgh1]

Originally Posted by Pumpkinheadmommy

That's one of the wonderful benefits of keeping baby boys intact. One of the purposes of the foreskin is to protect the glans from feces and other foreign matter at the diaper age. Around the age of 2 or so (not coincidentally about the time the child is getting out of diapers) the foreskin should start loosening up.

Very good point... in fact, circumcised boys can end up with meatal stenosis due to the urethral opening being exposed to poop/pee in a diaper and irritated. Actually, the only time you might see this in an intact child would be if there was forcible retraction or some other issue.

[Claire and Boys]

I have two boys, and let me tell you, it's actually quite unusual to even get poo on the penis. Reason being that the scrotum is a very good poop catcher

[Everrgreen]

My DS is 4 months old and intact. I haven't had an issue with this at all. Usually when I change him his penis is sort of sealed at the tip, and it opens when he pees (I can always tell when he's peeing in the tub ). And like a pp mentioned, once he pees anything that did get up there would be flushed out.

[rabbitmum]

Originally Posted by Claire and Boys

I have two boys, and let me tell you, it's actually quite unusual to even get poo on the penis. Reason being that the scrotum is a very good poop catcher

Hehe, good point! And, as has been said, even if any poo should get inside it will be flushed out with the next pee!

And, as has also been said, the foreskin isn't some kind of loose skin hanging around to provide places for poo and dirt to hide. It's skin that is originally stuck to the penis, just as other skin is stuck to other body parts, and doesn't create any mess or any need for special cleaning procedures.

I'm sure it's a good idea to clean a baby's penis from base to tip, as I so often see advised here, but I have never heard that here, where no one circumcises - I don't think it's that easy to accidentally retract. Here the only thing (penis wise) that is checked when a boy is born, is that he can pee! If he can, there's nothing to worry about.

I actually don't clean my son's penis very often at all, he gets clean from just sitting in the tub.

[robertandenith]

My first 2 kids are girls and my last is the boy. I have to admit, baby girls are WAY harder to wipe poop than boys. My boy is so darn easy and when there is a poop explosion I just wipe poop like wiping a finger.

I made a video of how to care for an intact boy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=367CR4EqyWo

Just do the same you do with girls, wipe front to back. NO need to clean under it, you'll do harm if foreskin is retracted by someone else except the boy. Watch the video it's only a minute duration.

[RiverSky]

Originally Posted by robertandenith

My first 2 kids are girls and my last is the boy. I have to admit, baby girls are WAY harder to wipe poop than boys. My boy is so darn easy and when there is a poop explosion I just wipe poop like wiping a finger.

Yup! We had an intact son first and of course, took care to clean everywhere (under testicles is actually the only place poop ever hid succesfully) and poop NEVER ever got inside his foreskin. We were both so shocked when we had our daughter and realized how much harder it was to keep her clean, that her poor urethra was so exposed to all that poop, and still, she's never had a UTI and she's almost 8.

The main thing is that little boys should NEVER be retracted by anyone except themselves. There's truly never any need, anyway. We were never tempted in the least, it was very clear that everything was fine.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

Originally Posted by Claire and Boys

I have two boys, and let me tell you, it's actually quite unusual to even get poo on the penis. Reason being that the scrotum is a very good poop catcher

Ack aint that the truth those scrotum wrinkles are the hardest part to clean. With the testicles moving around and the skin shifting it can be a real challenge cleaning that off. The penis you just start at the base and slide the wash cloth/wipe to the tip and repeat as needed.

[inchwormz]

Thank you for the most helpful responses!! This definitely answers my question!

[eepster]

Ask anyone who is familiar with intact care, and has changed both an intact and a circ'd baby boy, and they will tell you intact is easier. As others have said, stuff doesn't really get in there, so that's not a worry. With a circ'd one the glans is rough and poop sticks to it, where the foreskin of an intact penis it as smooth as the res of him. On a circ'd penis there is a ridge behind the glans where the poop gets caught, and the poop also gets in the scar.

Also, the consequences of less than ideal cleaning are fewer with an intact baby. The worst thing that happens to an intact baby is diaper rash. However, a circ'd boy is vulnerable to get meatal stenosis (narrowing of the pee hole from scar tissue.) Meatal stenosis is very common, aprox 10% of circ'd boys get it, and is caused by the diaper contents burning the sensitive expossed meateus (pee hole.) During the early day there is the concern of infection with the open wound from the circ.

The hardest parts to clean though have nothing to do with the penis. The scrotum (the skin that covers the testes, aka balls) is very wrinkly and takes forever to get clean. Also the creases where the diaper meets the thigh are hard to get at when the baby is really wiggling.

[inchwormz]

Originally Posted by eepster

Also, the consequences of less than ideal cleaning are fewer with an intact baby. The worst thing that happens to an intact baby is diaper rash. However, a circ'd boy is vulnerable to get meatal stenosis (narrowing of the pee hole from scar tissue.) Meatal stenosis is very common, aprox 10% of circ'd boys get it, and is caused by the diaper contents burning the sensitive expossed meateus (pee hole.) During the early day there is the concern of infection with the open wound from the circ.

Where can I find out more about this? The risks vs. benefits card is one that may work on my sisters (or at least their partners!).

[eepster]

Originally Posted by inchwormz

Where can I find out more about this? The risks vs. benefits card is one that may work on my sisters (or at least their partners!).

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1016016-overview
http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/h...l-stenosis.htm

Here's some stuff about other risks:
http://www.fathermag.com/health/circ/risks/
http://www.associatedcontent.com/art...mrsa_risk.html
http://www.circumstitions.com/Complic.html
http://www.cirp.org/library/complications/kaplan/

[rabbitmum]

Originally Posted by eepster

With a circ'd one the glans is rough and poop sticks to it, where the foreskin of an intact penis it as smooth as the res of him.

The glans gets rough? I didn't know that (having never seen a circumcised penis). That's bad... apart from cleaning, it can't be very good for sex!

[KimL]

My son is 6yrs old. intact, if you will. As far as "cleaning" goes.... there's nothing different... he soaps up and rinses off... easier than a girl! he has never had any sort of infection or anything... it's not a big deal.

[eepster]

Originally Posted by rabbitmum

The glans gets rough? I didn't know that (having never seen a circumcised penis). That's bad... apart from cleaning, it can't be very good for sex!

It's not rough like sand paper or anything, just not as silky smooth as regular baby skin, like baby bottoms and foreskins, which are pretty easy to wipe.