Phimosis is a medical condition in which foreskin of your penis becomes too tight. The tight foreskin does not retract over the glans penis. Experts suggest that conditions such as repeated urinary tract infections, rough handling of the foreskin, trauma or injury to the foreskin, genital herpes, gonorrhea, syphilis, eczema, psoriasis, lichen planus, etc. significantly contribute to the development of phimosis in men. When a baby boy is born with a tight foreskin (physiological phimosis), in 90% of the cases the tissues are resolved by the time he reaches the age of 15-17. However, the phimosis has to be treated professionally if it still persists after that.
If you are suffering from phimosis, you experience a lot of symptoms such as swelling, redness, itching, and soreness around the penis. Phimosis also causes severe pain and discomfort whenever you try to retract the foreskin. In such cases, the chances of scarring in the foreskin are quite high. This scarring makes the phimosis even more serious and painful. Phimosis also causes pain during urination and erection. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to treat phimosis on time to avoid further problems that it can possibly lead to.
What Happens In Case Of Untreated Phimosis?
If you leave your phimosis untreated, then maintaining the hygiene of the penile region becomes difficult due to non-retractability of the foreskin. Due to unhygienic, microbes, sweat, and dead tissues accumulate in the area of foreskin, which can lead to several other serious problems.
Balanitis
Balanitis is a condition in which the glans penis is swollen. It is considered as a severe condition, which can arise if you leave phimosis untreated. This condition causes a lot of redness, soreness, itching and discomfort to the penis. Not only this, thick fluid also starts building that adds up to the discomfort.
Paraphimosis
This is a condition in which the retracted foreskin of the penis cannot be pulled back to its original position to cover the glans penis. Paraphimosis is considered as an emergency urological problem and it may cause an obstruction in the blood flow to the glans penis, resulting in the death of tissues.
Balanoposthitis
In case of balanoposthitis, glans penis and the foreskin of the penis are inflamed. This causes pain, burning sensation, irritation and unusual discharge from the penis. In some cases, conditions such as skin erosion or lesions may occur as well. Balanoposthitis may cause difficulty during urination or sexual activities.
Penile Cancer
In rare cases, phimosis can also cause penile cancer. Phimosis increases the risk of cancer on the skin of the penis or within the penis. According to experts, men with tight foreskin are twice at risk of developing penile cancer than those who are circumcised.
Obstruction Of Urinary Stream
Untreated phimosis causes obstruction in the urinary stream as well. This leads to inability to empty the bladder. In some cases, a small amount of blood may also come out along with the urine. The obstruction in the urinary stream caused by phimosis increases the risk of urinary tract infections.
Permanent Damage To Penis
Untreated phimosis may cause conditions such as gangrene and also decreases the blood flow to the penis. These problems can eventually lead to permanent damage to the penis. In such conditions, the doctor may be required to surgically remove the foreskin of the penis. Therefore, it is necessary to treat phimosis to keep all these complications away.
Treatment Of Phimosis
If you are suffering from phimosis, you do not need to worry much about it as it is curable and can be treated effectively. If phimosis is not very serious in your case, then good hygiene practices can prove to be very effective in providing relief from the condition. However, refrain yourself from indulging in self-medication as it is not the right thing to do. Medicines for phimosis are available in Ayurveda, Homeopathy as well as Allopathy. You should start the medication exactly the way your doctor suggests.
Ayurvedic Treatment Of Phimosis
There are some Ayurvedic medicines, which can help you in loosening and retraction of your foreskin. You can take one spoon of Ashwagandha Ghrita with lukewarm water once a day in the morning empty stomach and for external application, you can use Ksheerabala oil. Also, you should contact an Ayurveda expert rather than taking the medication on your own.
Homeopathic Treatment Of Phimosis
In homeopathy, the doctor prescribes medicines such as Apis Mellifica, Caladium, Merc Sol, Cantharis, etc. for phimosis. The homeopathic treatment can help you immensely in getting relief from pain, redness, itching, and burning sensation that phimosis causes.
Allopathy Treatment Of Phimosis
In Allopathy, the doctor prescribes medicines such as hyaluronidase and hydrocortisone that effectively provide you symptomatic relief. Your doctor may also prescribe some antibiotics and steroid creams or ointments although these treatments might not be permanent.
If the above-mentioned treatments fail in providing relief from phimosis or if the condition of phimosis recurs, undergoing circumcision becomes extremely necessary.
Circumcision For Phimosis
Circumcision is a procedure where the foreskin of the penis is removed surgically. Traditional, also known as conventional circumcision involves slits and incision to remove the foreskin. Traditional circumcision is quite complex, painful with a long downtime full of worries. But modern and advanced surgical procedures such as ZSR and laser circumcision are comparatively much easier.
In laser circumcision, the doctor uses a high-intensity laser beam to remove the foreskin from the penis. Laser circumcision is a minimally invasive procedure. The doctor removes the foreskin precisely with a laser beam, while leaving the surrounding tissues intact. You remain under the effect of local or general anaesthesia during the whole procedure. Laser circumcision does not involve big incisions or cause any pain. This modern and advanced laser-based circumcision offers quick recovery as well. Another major USP of laser circumcision is that it is a daycare procedure that allows you to be discharged on the same day.
Other benefits of laser circumcision include the following:-
- No bleeding
- No side effects
- Painless procedure
- Zero risk of infections
- 10-15 minutes procedure
- Causes no wounds or scars
- No risk of recurrence of phimosis
- Minimal swelling and pain during and after the procedure
Laser circumcision is considered as the most effective treatment of phimosis and it provides a permanent solution. It is certainly simpler and more effective in comparison to the conventional procedure of circumcision. If you notice any symptoms of phimosis, consult a doctor as soon as possible. You should treat your phimosis as early as possible because it has the potential to cause several other serious problems.
Pristyn Care offers laser circumcision in its clinics across India. Their doctors are highly experienced and skilled and perform the laser circumcision perfectly. If you are thinking of undergoing laser circumcision, we would supremely suggest you to contact Pristyn Care without delaying anymore. Just go and get your circumcision done and have a happy and healthy life.
