3yo says his penis hurts & has swollen lump

[Gendenwitha]

But it's not swollen by the foreskin, but farther up, about halfway up the penis.

Doc says epson salt baths, keep an eye on it. Says it sounds like he may have caused it some sort of trauma.

He's just learning how to potty train, and I thought maybe a group of parents might have more insight into how he could have injured himself than doc would. Concerned maybe he grabbed it to try and hold it until he got to potty, or injured it pulling up his pants... (is that possible? idk, I'm a girl!)

His foreskin partially retracts, which makes me worried about infection.

On related note: On care for uncirc penis, you always hear, "It's easy to clean, just retract it in the shower and rinse off" and then you hear, "Don't force retraction, leave it alone" when it comes to infants. What about in-between? How do I make sure he stays clean when it retracts partially? Plus, he's three now, he'll let me clean it, but what about that time when he's too old for me to clean it, but too young to care about hygiene?

[Maiasaura]

I'm sure others will speak up, but when my intact ds was that young, I did what your MD said, pretty much. But I mostly used plain lukewarm water.
DS had plenty of instances (not *lots*, but plenty) when he was little that his penis hurt, or was red, or swollen, or all of the above.

Usually I just put ds in a warm bath, enough water to cover his bits, and let him sit in there for a good while. Maybe read him a story. His foreskin tends to open like a sea flower when it's in water, so I assume that's for the purpose of self-cleaning, if that makes sense. The body's way of self-cleaning.

I never pulled my son's foreskin back. Even though he was pretty well fully retractable by 3-ish. Usually when he had a bath (or sometimes something would require a day or two or even three of multiple baths) it would resolve.
You never know-- it could be something as simple as ONE grain of sand from the sandbox that lodged itself in there, and the penis is telling you it's not making a pearl in there

DS is 9, now. His "penis issues" have gotten less and less over the years, so maybe it really is the sandbox. He hasn't played in one for a loooong time. He had something the other day, for the first time in ages. I had him bathe, like in the past, but I also put homemade plantain salve in there. DS said it hurt like heck to apply it, but felt good after, and it resolved really fast.

HTH!

[Fyrestorm]

As far as in between years - still easy...leave it alone. Penises are self cleaning. A swish in the bath should do it. Chances are your son will be playing with it and comfortably retracting it as far as he wants...that's just fine.

He could be separating unevenly - so the swelling you see could very well be some separation irritation as the foreskin is separating in the lower area first. The lump (if I read correctly) could be a smegma pearl which will eventually work it's way out.

Is he experiencing any pain? Fever?

I would stick with the baths and if he is having any burning due to separation, maybe try peeing into water (with the penis submerged) it will dilute the urine and make it sting less. Separation pain usually subsides in a day or two.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

Originally Posted by Fyrestorm

As far as in between years - still easy...leave it alone. Penises are self cleaning. A swish in the bath should do it. Chances are your son will be playing with it and comfortably retracting it as far as he wants...that's just fine.

He could be separating unevenly - so the swelling you see could very well be some separation irritation as the foreskin is separating in the lower area first. The lump (if I read correctly) could be a smegma pearl which will eventually work it's way out.

Is he experiencing any pain? Fever?

I would stick with the baths and if he is having any burning due to separation, maybe try peeing into water (with the penis submerged) it will dilute the urine and make it sting less. Separation pain usually subsides in a day or two.

unless he retracts it to swish in the bath leave it be. You can ask him if he wants to but if he dosnt it isnt a big deal. Just being retractable does not = needing to retract to keep clean. Until puberty hits there just isnt a need and even in puberty the need is purely about odor and not because of possible infection.

[eepster]

It could have been the toilet seat.

Potty learning little boys some times don't put the seat all the way up before starting to pee, and then rest their penises on the rim of the toilet. Then the lid can fall down and cause injury.

Your Dr's advise to just keep an eye on it is perfectly fine.

[Gendenwitha]

It's better!

Got a lot worse first, but after the second Epson salt bath he had some pus-like discharge from under the foreskin, and then it was much better after that. Still sensitive the first night, but seems to be all good now.

Thanks!

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

So glad he is better. It sounds pretty typical for separation type issues resolving that fast.