Swollen Penis?

[ilovebabies]

My 9 month old uncircumsized son's penis looks very swollen about midway to the base (not the tip). He seems uncomfortable too because he's not wanting to straddle my hip when I carry him and fussed just a bit when I changed his diaper. It doesn't look red, or otherwise strange except that it looks very swollen. We first noticed it last night during bath time so I'm sure it's only been since yesterday because I always make sure it looks okay at each diaper changing (I don't have prior experience with an uncirced boy so I'm always making sure it looks okay!).

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Tracy

[ilovebabies]

I called my Ped. office and they want to see him. He's urinating fine, there is nothing else except that it's swollen. It's strange. The tip is fine. Most of the swelling is near the base. They better not try to retract him. They don't during checkups, but since I'm taking him in for this, they might try.

[l_olive]

Please, please, please read this thread

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=764732

BEFORE you go to the doctor!!!!

[ilovebabies]

I've read that before, but he's only 9 months old? This shouldn't be happening yet, right??

[ilovebabies]

Okay, I just looked at it again and it's very swollen. I can see a vein and it feels hard to the touch and he wasn't happy when I touched it so it must hurt. Again, this is not the tip, but the base. He's urinating fine.

[tayndrewsmama]

I am not seeing in that link where swelling and redness at the BASE of the penis is related to the separation process. My ds is nearing five and has never had anything like that.

I'd follow through with the appointment. You sound to be aware of what they don't need to do. Having him checked out and getting their take on the situation doesn't require you to do what they say. You can take that info home a research it more if they are recommending that something be done.

[tayndrewsmama]

Oh, I should mention that I don't see that this issue is even related to his circ status anyway. So, they certainly shouldn't give you any trouble regarding that. I hope it's not too serious. Poor guy.

[tayndrewsmama]

Originally Posted by ilovebabies

Okay, I just looked at it again and it's very swollen. I can see a vein and it feels hard to the touch and he wasn't happy when I touched it so it must hurt. Again, this is not the tip, but the base. He's urinating fine.

How soon are they able to see him? That sounds like it might be serious.

[l_olive]

Iit can happen at just about any time in a boy's life. There have been several moms in this forum who have described symptoms like your son's in infants.

But I'm a big believer in mother's intuition. If you feel something looks wrong, then by all means have it checked. But please keep two things in mind. We've seen reports over and over in this forum of doctors who retract so quickly that mothers can't stop them, of doctors who are firm in their belief that smegma is dirty and needs to be scrubbed out at all costs, and who will prescribe antibiotics without culturing to see if an infection is even present -- which then leads to a yeast overgrowth, which results in a red, swollen, itchy penis, etc...

Maybe your doctor is better informed than that, but maybe s/he isn't, and then in that case, YOU need to be prepared to be firm.

The other thing to keep in mind is that foreskins are not ticking timebombs waiting to become diseased. In your first post, you said that since you don't have experience with intact penises, you're always looking to make sure everything is just right. Really, you can relax about that. You don't need to do that with his penis any more than you do with say, his kneecaps.

[ilovebabies]

Thanks. Yes, I do tend to keep a watchful eye but that's just because of lack of experience. I'll relax a bit more.

Just to clarify, it's not red or discolored in any way. If it weren't swollen, it would look completely normal.

Appt. is at 1:15. He's sleeping now. I'll let you know what the doc. says.

Tracy

[Fellow Traveler]

Originally Posted by ilovebabies

Thanks. Yes, I do tend to keep a watchful eye but that's just because of lack of experience. I'll relax a bit more.

Just to clarify, it's not red or discolored in any way. If it weren't swollen, it would look completely normal.

Appt. is at 1:15. He's sleeping now. I'll let you know what the doc. says.

Tracy

Separation symptoms, like those described in the link, can occur at earlier ages. It is most common in the 2-5 age range. Since you're going to the Doctor, if he is disposed to diagnose an infection, be sure he does a culture so that you can be sure what you may or not be dealing with.

[perspective]

Originally Posted by ilovebabies

Okay, I just looked at it again and it's very swollen. I can see a vein and it feels hard to the touch and he wasn't happy when I touched it so it must hurt. Again, this is not the tip, but the base. He's urinating fine.

What do you mean by "feels hard", like unusually hard? Is this the area that feels hard on the shaft, or is it lower down, like on the testicle sack?

I think it might be serious, make sure to mention it "feeling hard" because that could be an important, and distinctive symptom.

Either way, there is NO reason to retract him, and make sure they dont.

[ilovebabies]

Okay, the Ped. was wonderful. She didn't retract AT ALL but just did a little feeling around. By the time I got there, it was red and more swollen. There was also a little brown gunk where his penis would have been in the diaper.

She feels like it could be an infection so prescribed and antibiotic. If there is no improvement for 48 hours she said to bring him back in.

She also said that both circ'd and intact boys get infections and it's in no way related to the fact that he's intact. I wanted to hug her.

Is there anything I can put in his bath to help speed the clearing up of his infection? I took his diaper off for awhile and he's crawling around naked right now. lol

Someone asked about it feeling hard. Well, I don't know if it's a normal hard or not because I've never really felt around before. Maybe I was just feeling the firmness from it being swollen. She felt around and didn't say a word about it being unusually hard or anything like that.

Also, I wanted to clarify that it's red and swollen from about midway to the base (not on the tip at all and not on the testicles at all).

Tracy

[Raelynn]

Your Ped sounds awesome!! I dont have any tips or advice about baths or anything, but I hope the antibiotics help!

[perspective]

Yeah, your ped seems to be very on top of the situations and knows his/her stuff.

Yeah, the hard feeling I was talking about, if it was what I had thought (and its obvious it was not that now) you would have noticed something was up the second you touched the area. Follow the peds advice, and relax a bit

[l_olive]

I think it's great that your ped didn't try to retract, but I'm not understanding why she'd subject a child to a course of antibiotics without culturing whatever is being discharged from his penis. Does he have any other signs of an infection? A fever, or anything?

Without anything else to go on, there's no indication that this child needs to have a course of antibiotics which then risks the overgrowth of yeast that so often happens afterwards.

Everything that you described sounds like separation and smegma buildup which will get better on its own within a day or so -- without needing medication their side effects.

[MCatLvrMom2A&X]

Since the foreskin area appears normal and it is farther down the shaft, Middle to Base I am not sure what could be causing that but that dosnt fit the description of seperation issues.

It bothers me a bit that she didnt do a culture and just prescribed abx. Now you cant have a culture done if he has taken abx I dont think.

My first thought actually was a bug or spider bite. But I would think you would have seen the actual bite spot if that were the case.

[l_olive]

Yeah, but then what's the little bit of brownish discharge?

[ilovebabies]

He didn't have the tiny bit of brown discharge when he was at the Ped.'s office. That came a couple hours later. All she had to go on was the fact that it was swollen and red and her poking around a bit. I'm no doctor so I have no idea what she could have differently.?

It looks just a little better this morning after 3 doses. We'll see what tomorrow morning looks like. He isn't uncomfortable at all anymore (or doesn't seem to be). Even touching it doesn't make him fuss. I'm praying this will do the trick.

After the antibiotics (she said to only take it for 7 days), I'll get some good probiotics in him.

Tracy

[thixle]

After the antibiotics (she said to only take it for 7 days), I'll get some good probiotics in him.

Little tip- as long as it is not within 2 hours of taking the antibiotic, the probiotics are wonderful! So, If he's taking the antibiotics every 4-5 hours, give him the probiotic 2 to 2.5 hours after... this is my first line of defense Then keep taking the probiotics for a week. In my experience, it has been MUCH better to take both, rather than to wait out the antibiotic.

And I was thinking bug bite or maybe even an ingrown hair? Swelling at the base of the penis definately doesn't sound like seperation
I've become pretty cautious about antibiotics in the past year... and do think they are way over-prescribed. It's possible a topical antibiotic ointment would have worked? Who knows. Glad to see your ped isn't foreskinphobic