Think twice about circumcision! I wish I had and now need help :(

[mom2allofthem]

I thought long and hard about posting this and decided to do it because I need some help and advice and I'm not trusting doctors to tell me the truth at this point. I am not looking for anybody to redicule me because I already feel horrible for doing this to my son. I wish I had found all this to read before I made my decision
I was stupid and had my son circumcised. He had the plastibell type done but there was never any plastic left on the head of his penis. I was told to put vaseline on it so it wouldn't stick to the diaper and it would need no further care. I thought something was wrong when it looked like it wasn't circumcised at all after I got home. I did some research and found he had a "loose" circumcision and ran the risk of penile adhesions. I read on how to care for it and somebody told me about her son having penile adhesions so I pulled the skin back and applied A&D ointment with each diaper change as prevention.
I noticed it looked like he had a big blister on the tip of his penis where it bled pretty bad right after he had it done in the hospital (he's now a month old) I washed it well and applied some bacitracin and now it looks a little better but still red and a little swollen around the ring on the tip. He isn't running a fever or anything so I didn't take him to the ER and I can't get him in to the doctor until tomorrow.
I've been pulling it back and letting it get as much air as possible but I'm really worried it may never heal right and is now infected. It doesn't hurt him or anything, just looks very red like it isn't healing.
I feel terrible for doing this to him after what I've been reading and want some info on how to take care of this properly and get this infection cleared up (if it is infected). I do not want to have to get it redone and cut even more skin off his penis! It makes no sense to do a loose circumcision like this and leave this much of the foreskin on it. It's almost like all the doctor did is retract the skin and cut very little off to make much of a difference and cause more complicaitons than if it was just left alone. I wish I had known better!
I started him on some infant probiotics and he's exclusively breastfed (thanks to this forum!). I hope that will help boost his immune system and get it healed quickly but I need some advice.
I'm also wondeirng if the plastic ring should have left the plastic on the tip and that's why it's not healing right.
Any advice would be helpful

[Yulia_R]

I'm so sorry, mama

Loose circ is better since your son has less chances of getting tight/painful erections as an adult.

No one should mess with his foreskin from now on though. If I were you, I'd left it alone making sure that no one (including doctors) retracts it. Adhesions is just the way his penis tries to heal and his foreskin tries to do what it is supposed to do: to adhere to the glans in order to protect them.

Adhesions will release on their own when it would be time for your son to retract had he been left intact. I'm providing a link below to back up this statement. I wish you both healing.

http://www.kidsgrowth.com/resources/...il.cfm?id=3420

A recent study in the Journal of Urology followed 254 circumcised boys to see what happened to their penile adhesions. Only seven patients had been treated for adhesions. Despite this, the prevalence of adhesions decreased dramatically with age to:

71% of boys age ‹12 months
28% of boys ages 1-5 years old
8% of boys ages 5-9
2% ages 9-18

We agree with the conclusions of this study. Penile adhesions after circumcision normally resolve without treatment.

[mom2allofthem]

Originally Posted by Yulia_R

I'm so sorry, mama

Loose circ is better since your son has less chances of getting tight/painful erections as an adult.

No one should mess with his foreskin from now on though. If I were you, I'd left it alone making sure that no one (including doctors) retracts it. Adhesions is just the way his penis tries to heal and his foreskin tries to do what it is supposed to do: to adhere to the glans in order to protect them.

Adhesions will release on their own when it would be time for your son to retract had he been left intact. I'm providing a link below to back up this statement. I wish you both healing.

http://www.kidsgrowth.com/resources/...il.cfm?id=3420

A recent study in the Journal of Urology followed 254 circumcised boys to see what happened to their penile adhesions. Only seven patients had been treated for adhesions. Despite this, the prevalence of adhesions decreased dramatically with age to:

71% of boys age ‹12 months
28% of boys ages 1-5 years old
8% of boys ages 5-9
2% ages 9-18

We agree with the conclusions of this study. Penile adhesions after circumcision normally resolve without treatment.

Wow, thanks for that advice. Somebody had me totally freaked out saying I needed to prevent adhesions since her son keeps having problems with them and they had to keep releasing them. That's why I was trying to prevent them.
It looks like the gland part that is all red and not healing when I pull the skin back. The first time I did it, there was all kinds of yellow crud (again, for lack of a better term, I'm ignorant to this problem) and I thought that would cause an infection.
Nobody told me anything about what to expect with this type of circ. so I had no idea when I saw it looked like nothing had been done.

[lilli'smom]

It was after I had my DS#2 circed and the Pedi literally RIPPED the adhesion apart that I found this board and became Pro Intact.

I was doing the same thing, retracting DS and putting a petrolium goop on him. I was so happy(and yet disgusted and sad that I had allowed the circ for both my boys) to have found how to actually care for a penis the proper way.

DS2 also had the "loose" circ. He, thankfully, does not look circed at all now, and at 6, the remaining forskin has released all by itself.

Just leave the penis alone ffrom now on and he should be fine.

[mom2allofthem]

So I should leave it alone and let it form adhesions.
I'm so glad I found this board too because I almost considered having it re done and the rest of it cut off. Now, that makes me sick to think about doing to him
What about infection? Is there a way to keep it clean while it's re-attaching without retracting it?

[perspective]

Originally Posted by mom2allofthem

Wow, thanks for that advice. Somebody had me totally freaked out saying I needed to prevent adhesions since her son keeps having problems with them and they had to keep releasing them. That's why I was trying to prevent them.
It looks like the gland part that is all red and not healing when I pull the skin back. The first time I did it, there was all kinds of yellow crud (again, for lack of a better term, I'm ignorant to this problem) and I thought that would cause an infection.
Nobody told me anything about what to expect with this type of circ. so I had no idea when I saw it looked like nothing had been done.

Well there are two types of adhesions.

1. The natural kind, that all boys have, where the penis head is connected at a cellular level with the foreskin. This connection protects the penis head, and is released at some point later in life.

2. The kind of adhesions that are formed when the remaining foreskin heals incorrectly, and creates something called "skin bridges". These can cause no problem, but can also cause serious problems. They are a complication to circumcision, and should be avoided as much as possible. This is what you read about online. I have a skin bridge myself, and if my mom could have stopped its formation, it would have meant a lot.

You have already made one mistake, dont make two. You have to watch out, and make sure ONLY proper adhering is occuring.

[nd_deadhead]

I don't have any advice regarding adhesions, but I wanted to welcome you to the forum and offer you a big warm hug. So many moms who have their sons circumcised refuse to admit that they might have made a mistake. I think admitting that you made a mistake takes a HUGE amount of courage, and I applaud you for taking that step, and for thinking first of your son, instead of about your own feelings.

My sons are not circumcised, so I can only empathize with the emotional struggle you are going through. I do know this, however: the words of a mother who circumcised her son and later regretted it are FAR more powerful than anything I could say against circumcision. Lots of women in your position find comfort in helping to educate other new moms to the truth about circumcision before it's too late.

I hope to see you around a lot, and all my best to your wonderful baby boy.

[mom2allofthem]

Originally Posted by perspective

Well there are two types of adhesions.

1. The natural kind, that all boys have, where the penis head is connected at a cellular level with the foreskin. This connection protects the penis head, and is released at some point later in life.

2. The kind of adhesions that are formed when the remaining foreskin heals incorrectly, and creates something called "skin bridges". These can cause no problem, but can also cause serious problems. They are a complication to circumcision, and should be avoided as much as possible. This is what you read about online. I have a skin bridge myself, and if my mom could have stopped its formation, it would have meant a lot.

You have already made one mistake, dont make two. You have to watch out, and make sure ONLY proper adhering is occuring.

How do I prevent the bridges? If I don't retract it, I can't see how it's adhering

[blessedwithboys]

hey, honey, i just wanted to offer a cyberhug, as i too am a mother who circed two boys beofre finding this board and experiencing a paradigm shift.

those who know more might advise against, but if it were me, i might apply some fresh breastmilk to the area, replace the skin and leave it be for a while. please, please, comeone correct me if this is bad advice!

[kiara7]

I would just leave it alone. The skin will reattach to the glans and will perform it's duties as intended. Make sure you tell every doctor and nurse not to touch his penis BEFORE the diaper comes off. Repeat retraction and ripping is what is going to create problems. Seems like putting some breastmilk on top might be a good idea as breastmilk has antibacterial and antimicrobial properties. Good luck to you and your little boy!

[Louisep]

Agree with PPs - please don't retract the foreskin! I don't know much about these complications but all I know is we were told not to retract the foreskin for a long time as it can cause damage (DS is not circ-ed). Can you find a pedi in your area who is knowledgeable about uncirc-ed babies? Where do you live? Maybe you can put out a post and someone will make a recommendation to you.

Please don't beat yourself up over this.

[fruitful womb]

A word on "adhesions". As mentioned above, there are two types.

The prepuce of all males is bonded to the glans. This is the body protecting the meatus and glans from being exposed to the elements. This is actually called the synechia. Its bonded because the penis is still developing.

Think of it this way, one wouldn't separate the synechia of a newborn kitten's eyes because the eyes are still developing. In the same way, one should never separate the synechia of the male prepuce because its still developing.

The tip of the foreskin, the fenar band, acts as a sphincter. It opens to expel urine then closes again when urination is complete. This is when an ignorant doctor will say, "The opening looks too tight - he needs a circumcision.". I've seen this sphincter open during a diaper change. I can test to the fact its suppose to look tight. The 'febar band' (a feature designed to protect the infant/child) is removed during a circumcision. Its still a down side to any type of circumcision. Its better than an aggressive circ, as long as the care giver doesn't lyse adhesions causing the child agony. But we should always keep in mind that a knife near a healthy child's genitals is still inviting a mishap with a perfectly good part of the human blueprint.

I applaud you for sharing your story. I'm so sorry that a lesson was learned at your child's (and yours) expense. Not sharing your story would've been even more insulting to your child's injury. Remember Maya Angelou who says we do better when we know better.

[Quirky]

My guess is that the yellow gunk is just lymph fluid that's hardened -- not pus, not infectious, not if you're not smelling a bad smell and noticing inflammation, fever, etc.

I would NOT use any diaper ointment on the area -- that's not appropriate for mucous membranes, which is what the inside of the penis is. Think about putting diaper ointment inside your vagina -- you wouldn't do it.

If you do need some kind of barrier ointment to keep it from sticking, I would recommend Un-petroleum Jelly which you can find online or at Whole Foods or a health food store -- it's like petroleum jelly except all plant-based. That's the only thing I would use (although I agree breastmilk is an excellent idea).

Do you know for sure there's no plastic left from the Plastibell? No hard lumps under the remnant foreskin or anything? You definitely don't want any plastic left in there.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

You dont need to know about skin bridges actually that is something if he does have he can choose to keep them or have them released when he is an adult or at least a teen.

The more you pull it back the more scar tissue is going to form and cause him to loose even more sensation in his glans.

You should leave it be and make sure that any Dr/nurse leaves it alone as well. A lot of Dr are tempted to tear it apart where it has healed. Dont allow this.

Any further surgery should be your ds's decision not yours. He is very lucky to have as much foreskin left as he has so that he wont suffer from tight erections or painful ones due to tight skin.

[AXEius]

i don't have too much too add except that i had a loose circumcision with adhesions as an infant and was almost re circumcised, but when i hit puberty i ran out of skin for erections which made them painful. So my suggestion is to be hopeful that they didn't remove even more skin, because he may still not have enough skin when he reaches puberty. Also, most adhesions do not become permanent if they are left alone unless they are repeatedly tampered with, then left alone to become scar tissue.

[Yulia_R]

Originally Posted by MCatLvrMom2A&X

The more you pull it back the more scar tissue is going to form and cause him to loose even more sensation in his glans.

You should leave it be and make sure that any Dr/nurse leaves it alone as well. A lot of Dr are tempted to tear it apart where it has healed. Dont allow this.

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