14 month old son with constricted opening in his foreskin

[JoInScotland]

Well I guess the message title says it all. Ever since he turned 1 year old in January, he has started violently grabbing his bits whenever he gets an opportunity - nappy changes, bathtime, etc. At first we thought he was just curious as to what was beneath the nappy, but it is quite violent the way he grabs his bits and he's really strong.... so combine that with toddler fingernails and he's left long scratches in his penis occasionally!

My partner was looking at things more closely today during a nappy change and noticed that the opening is really tiny. Maybe it's pulling on things when he gets an erection? Sorry if this is too much information, but it looks completely normal when not aroused. Why else would he grab it so violently as if he's trying to pull it off his body?

I'll make an appointment with the GP as soon as possible, but I'm afraid she'll suggest something like circumcision to fix it and I really don't want surgery for him unless there is no alternative. Does anyone else out there have a son with this problem? What did you do/are you doing? I just want to help my little boy.

this is completely normal and will gradually widen over the years (my sons was like this and I too worried - but now aged 9 all is well

Conclusion - Almost all boys are born with narrow non-retractile foreskin which are fused with the glans beneath. This is a normal developmental physiological condition and is not a cause for concern. Some parents needlessly worry that the opening is not large enough.

Retraction of the foreskin should never be forced. It will retract when it is ready. There is no "right" age for retraction to occur.

A narrow non-retractable prepuce in boys is within the normal range of development and usually causes no problems. The prepuce usually will spontaneously widen until complete retractability is obtained. About 50-60 percent of boys at age ten do not have fully retractable foreskins.17 This is normal.17 After puberty, the percentage of boys with full retractability rapidly increases spontaneously

taken from this page

It's also completely normal for them to grab their bits at every opportunity

My son had a circumsision at 4 as his foreskin was really tight with no sign of it getting better. Everytime he wee'd it would blow up like a balloon before coming out which lead to lots of wee infections etc etc

Having the operation really is the last resort and i would think the gp would say it was too early to tell etc

Always an idea to take him though to put your mind at rest.

My son aged 25 months has this and it does blow up like a balloon when he wees. But we were referred to a urologist who said come back in a year and we will see. They don't rush for circumcision or even using the steroid cream.

I can confirm everything Furball has stated in her 'Conclusion' above is correct from my looking into this subject. It is therefore unlikely your son will need circumcising from what you say and NHS doctors are very reluctant to refer your son for it except as last resort. So I wouldn't worry about checking it out with your GP.

However, if the suggestion of circumcising does come up, I would go for it sooner rather than later. It really is no big deal. As a result of my research I'm very much in favour of circumcision and had both my boys done soon after birth. This followed from my experience helping my nephew cope with foreskin problems for quite a few years which ended when he was circumcised aged 7.