5yo w/ red irritated penis

[bubbles]

My intact 5yo woke up w/ a very red and irritated penis. I can't find anything in a search that really pertains so am asking for thoughts on it. It is red on the tip and when he retracts it it is red all the way down. I says it hurts a lot. Dh wants me to take him to the dr. right way. We love our new dr but I have never dealt w/ him regarding intact vs. circ so I have no idea what his reaction will be. I know I can hold my ground but really don't even want to go if I don't have to. There are no bumps, I would say it is a little swollen, no visible rash, etc.
Ideas?

[Pandora114]

Strip his undies like you would cloth diapers. get rid of the detergent residue

Make sure he's rinsing WELL after a bath. Like I'd start encouraging showers to be honest.

NO Bubble baths. That would irritate things too.

Make sure he shakes it after urinating. If he doesn't, encourage him to dab it with a bit of toilet paper.

Also, encourage him to partially retract to urinate if his foreskin is rather long. Urine could be getting under there and irritating his glans.

[pdx.mothernurture]

Since he's retractable, if you take him in just ask him to retract it himself so the doctor can take a peek. Absolutely INSIST on a culture, so they can determine-for sure-what's causing the irritation or if it's even an infection at all. Sometimes irritation is caused by a reaction to something like bubblebath or laundry detergent. From your description though, it's possible the irritation might be caused by something else, like yeast, as well.

It's up to you whether you take him in today or wait a bit to see if the irritation persists. Try warm baths with nothing but seasalt or a drop or two of teatree oil. If he's retractable, make sure he retracts, rinses well, and dries things off...no soap. Some mommas try a little bit of antibiotic ointment externally, but it's not really designed for mucousal tissue and if you're dealing with yeast it can make matters worse. If it's yeast, an over-the-counter cream like monistat will help.

Best wishes, keep us updated.

Jen

[bubbles]

Thanks so much for your input. I am trying your suggestions. I am going to see how things go and take him tomorrow if needed.
I have two thoughts right now. One is that I realized he hadn't had a bath or shower in two days due to being out and about and getting to bed late. The other is that he says his stomach hurts a bit but not like when he is going to throw up. That makes me wonder about a bladder infection. So, I will keep a watch and see what happens.
As for yeast, w/ no other symptoms (discharge, etc.) is the only way to tell by a culture? I will say that my dr has always been open-minded and cool about things I bring up so I shouldn't really be worried about taking him in. Good advice to have ds retract himself when we are in.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

Like a pp mentioned you could go with the otc yeast cream like monistat and see if that helps using it wont hurt any. If you are planning to take him in insist on a culture as well to make 100% sure he gets the proper treatment.

It is possible that he got some irritant in there and having it sit for 2 days might cause a issue.

[Fi.]

If you suspect yeast just ask him to retract and have him dab some monsitat on there. I know it sounds young but I remember having to put monistat on the inside of my vaginal lips and all over my labia at that age because of a wicked yeast infection and I can tell you I'd rather have done it myself (even with mom watching!) than had her do it