[MleMama]

My son is intact and has had a fever occasionally the last couple of days (99.5)

this morning he said his body felt hot inside.. no further explanation..

This evening he said his penis is red and hurty..

He has been without a proper bath for a couple days because we are without water in the Texas ice storm. But I have never used soap to clean his penis and in fact I don’t clean it and he has never had a problem.

I did see it is a bit red and I pulled the skin back a bit (no further than I’ve seen him pull it he’s had it pretty exposed) it was a bit pussy inside, no smell.

so I rinsed him with warm boiled water

he acts totally fine in himself but having seen pus I am a bit concerned. I realize I should not have pulled the skin back but I did not loosen it any and I did rinse away the pus and didn’t see any blood or anything..

Thoughts? We are in an ice storm and besides that I don’t want to take him to the dr for her to look at his penis if I don’t need too.. but certainly will if I see signs of infection. Just wanted to get thoughts.

 

[Ron_Low]

He has been without a proper bath for a couple days because we are without water in the Texas ice storm.

So sorry about your weather disaster.

I'm told the way to keep the foreskin area hygienic (absent the opportunity to bathe) is make sure the skin balloons while urinating (so the urine can flush out the space inside the foreskin). If the skin has retracted far enough, this may require a manual assist by him gently gripping the tip of the skin tube to slow down the urine leaving the body. Obviously it would be easy to make a mess unless he's seated on a toilet.

 

[hakunangovi]

I rather suspect that what you saw was smegma, not pus. From what I understand , if there is an infection then there will be a nasty smell. Smegma is an emollient and beneficial, and may smell like unwashed genitals. The redness and discomfort could very well be from separation - as the inner lining of his foreskin detaches from the glans. Ron's suggestion to flush out the foreskin cavity while peeing is a good one. Constant bathing is not required - just think of cultures like the Eskimo, who had no water, save for melted snow, for 8 months of the year.

 

[Metaphys]

He may have the beginning of balanitis. Thats what it sounds like to me. Probably just yeast, but these infections can also be a combo. It happens with intact boys especially if they are in diapers & can't wash with running water or if they have toddlers diarrhea. If you, can do a video or phone appointment with a pediatrician using a MyChart app or other doctor service. They will send you some cream (probably some nystatin) that you apply to the foreskin on the outside & it will start working in a few days. (If you can get to a pharmacy at all) Otherwise the doctor may be able to tell you what to do or use that you have handy at home. Some tips we have gotten are: If you can, let him go without a diaper for a little each day, use zinc cream (can make it if you have powder by mixing with vasoline or baby oil) and from now on, use vasoline on him after diapering (assuming he is that small) if you have it. It will act as a water repellent skin protector. It will keep his excretions from touching his skin directly especially in times where washing with running water isn't as possible or they have diarrhea or unformed poo.

They do feel bad with this. Hopefully this info helps!

My son is intact and has had a fever occasionally the last couple of days (99.5)

this morning he said his body felt hot inside.. no further explanation..

This evening he said his penis is red and hurty..

He has been without a proper bath for a couple days because we are without water in the Texas ice storm. But I have never used soap to clean his penis and in fact I don't clean it and he has never had a problem.

I did see it is a bit red and I pulled the skin back a bit (no further than I've seen him pull it he's had it pretty exposed) it was a bit pussy inside, no smell.

so I rinsed him with warm boiled water

he acts totally fine in himself but having seen pus I am a bit concerned. I realize I should not have pulled the skin back but I did not loosen it any and I did rinse away the pus and didn't see any blood or anything..

Thoughts? We are in an ice storm and besides that I don't want to take him to the dr for her to look at his penis if I don't need too.. but certainly will if I see signs of infection. Just wanted to get thoughts.

 

[Ron_Low]

we started retracting from 6 month old we have had no problems

Your own experience aside, your SONS will likely have shorter penile skin tubes because they were prematurely retracted.

Caregiver retraction is NEVER advisable. If he's not old enough to do it, then it doesn't need done.

 

[Ron_Low]

They were not retracted prematurely this is the way mothers looked after after their sons hygiene for many years until up to somewhere a around the 1980's. In a lot for other parts of the word they still do India for one example. One other thing some of the older doctors are starting to notice more cases of phimosis in teen agers and young adults coming thru their doors. Could this be because gentle stretching was not started earlier? I have no idea how you came to the conclusion that they will likely have shorter penile skin tubes because they were prematurely retracted makes no sense to me.

Caregiver retraction is NEVER advisable, WAS never advisable. If he's not old enough to do it, then it doesn't need done.

The average age of first foreskin retraction is 10.4 years in Denmark, where nobody fiddles with a child's genitals. About 3% of Danish 16 year-olds have non-retractable foreskin. It can be treated with gentle stretching by the boy himself if he wishes.

While the skin is still fused to the glans, the skin tube grows faster to keep up with the lengthwise growth of the penis.

 

[Ron_Low]

common in Denmark for most boys to suffer from phimosis

Denmark is not at all unusual, it's just that they're an overwhelmingly intact country where someone happened to compile the stats.

The point is that a non-retractable foreskin IS NOT pathological phimosis in a child. It's just a normal penis.

where the child is suffering from phimosis the amount of smegma under the foreskin is horrific this must be extremely unhygienic

Silly. We wash for social - not health - reasons. Until he can retract himself there is no need to retract, nor any social reason to be squeaky clean. How does every other mammal on earth manage this, do you suppose?

more than likely the reason they have to be circumcised.

Such BELIEFS are given as a reason, yes. But forcible retraction is likely to contribute to an actual medical problem requiring circumcision. (GRAPHIC medical slide on injuries from caregiver retraction https://tlctugger.com/wp-content/uploads/ForcibleRetractionPresentation-PFFR.pdf)

As the AAP says: "Clean only what is seen. Leave it alone."

 

[Ron_Low]

more uncircumcised boys in India and they start gentle non forceful retraction at bath time from around 6 months old.

That's quite a bold claim. I claim the opposite. Now what?

just to start to gently stretch the skin back until there is a bit of resistance - it can take up to 3 to 5 years before it is fully retractable. Do you understand now?

Yes, I understand. You are happy to go against professional medical advice and the child's best interests. ONLY THE OWNER should ever retract a foreskin.

 

[joandsarah77]

That's quite a bold claim. I claim the opposite. Now what?

Yes, I understand. You are happy to go against professional medical advice and the child's best interests. ONLY THE OWNER should ever retract a foreskin.

I have reported this person. They have not only posted dangerous advice in here but recommended putting muscle heat rub cream on boys genitals in the potty training section.