What are the symptoms of foreskin being too long in children?

If a child has severe foreskin, many symptoms will appear, such as smegma is easy to form inside the foreskin. If it is not cleaned for a long time, the smegma will cause bacteria to grow, resulting in balanitis. In addition, the foreskin will seriously affect the growth and development of the penis, and may also cause pain in the penis.

1. Foreskin infection

When bacteria invade the space between the foreskin and the glans penis, it can cause foreskin inflammation, which can lead to redness, swelling, itching, pain, and even pus discharge from the penis. Repeated inflammation of the foreskin opening can cause scar contracture at the foreskin opening, loss of skin elasticity and expansion ability, inability of the foreskin to retract upwards, and urethral stenosis.

2. Smegma

The secretions in the foreskin cannot be discharged because the foreskin is too tight. White bumps can be vaguely seen on the surface of the penis through the foreskin, or small lumps can be felt. These are all caused by the deposition of smegma.

3. Difficulty urinating

The foreskin opening is as narrow as a needle tip. When the baby urinates, the foreskin will bulge, making it difficult for urine to be discharged. Crying, dripping, or thin urine stream during urination may be complicated by urinary tract infection;

4. Erection pain

The narrow ring of the foreskin can cause pain during penile erection and affect sexual life in adulthood.

5. Urine is not straight, has a bad smell and causes dermatitis

It is caused by foreskin being too long, with the foreskin exceeding the glans by more than 1 cm. The direction of urination is uncertain, and the pants are often wet. The glans is damp and has a smell and is difficult to clean, and redness and rashes often occur. For older babies, if the foreskin is too long, they need to pull up the foreskin before urinating each time so that the urination can be accurately into the toilet.

6. Scar stenosis

Because the foreskin opening is narrow and cannot be turned over for cleaning for a long time, it causes repeated infections of the foreskin, which eventually leads to edema, thickening, loss of elasticity, and scar formation. The glans also becomes dry, keratinized, and atrophied due to long-term inflammatory stimulation. This is called pathological phimosis and often occurs during school age.