Circumcision: description of the procedure, advantages and disadvantages



If you look at the relevant section in Wikipedia, the term circumcision is derived from the Latin word circumcisio.

In the people such medical manipulation is called circumcision. The history of this procedure has more than one hundred years. The mummies of the Egyptian pharaohs, wall paintings found in Egypt, convincingly prove that the removal of the foreskin was a generally accepted procedure.

Currently, circumcision is one of the most frequently performed operations worldwide, both for therapeutic reasons to prevent a number of pathologies (including cancer lesions) and for religious reasons.

The practice of circumcision in many cultures is ritual. According to the Mosaic Laws, the removal of foreskin in boys is done on the eighth day after birth, in many African tribes the procedure is performed as an initiation ceremony when a teenager reaches puberty. Exposing the head of a member symbolizes the transformation of a young man into a man.

In addition, followers of religions practicing circumcision, lived in areas experiencing problems with water, which resulted in poor hygiene, and as a result, a variety of inflammatory diseases of the penis. Therefore, the procedure was not only ritual, but simply hygienic.

At the end of the 19th century, only 5% of men underwent a similar procedure in America, however, the growth of the pathologies of the foreskin among servicemen who had lived in tropical countries for a long time caused the spread of this surgical intervention. In Australia, circumcision is a compulsory procedure, which is carried out at an already mature age (or earlier at the request of the parents).



Many representatives of the stronger sex (as, by the way, women) believe that the absence of foreskin is more attractive from an aesthetic point of view. However, experts say about the medical benefits of such a procedure. More recently, studies have been conducted, during which they found out that the mucous membrane of the foreskin is rich in Langerhans cells - the main target of HIV.

Circulation removes most of these cells, and those that remain are much less susceptible to the human immunodeficiency virus. At the same time, the coarsened mucous and the skin of the penis makes penetration of the virus more difficult. The same applies to sexually transmitted infections.

Circumcision of the foreskin has several advantages:

• prevention of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, but the absence of a foreskin does not preclude the mandatory use of a condom;
• prevention of inflammatory pathologies of the foreskin and penis;
• reduces the risk of cancer of the penis and cervix in the partner;
• allows for more thorough hygiene of the genitals;
• prolongation of intercourse by reducing the sensitivity of the skin of the foreskin;
• prevention of infections of the genitourinary system in young children.

According to experts, modern techniques of excision of the foreskin eliminate the risk of complications of the procedure. Now, to perform this kind of manipulation, a laser, effective anesthesia, medications are used to speed up the regenerative processes and prevent secondary infectious inflammation. In the forums devoted to the discussion of such a problem, the circumcision is covered in detail, there are links to photos and videos of the procedure.

Circumcision, like other types of surgery, carries a certain risk. However, all aspects are discussed at prior consultation with the doctor. On the one hand, the doctor explains in detail to the patient the course of the manipulation, lists possible complications and methods of their prevention, eliminates contraindications, discusses the price of the operation. On the other hand, a man can assess the qualification of the surgeon, the conditions of the clinic.

Circumcision: operation, indications and limitations to conduct, methods of implementation

Increasingly, experts advise that the operation should be carried out at an early age.

According to statistics, about 10% of men are forced to do the procedure after 25–30 years for medical reasons.

In addition, in boys, such manipulation is associated with a lower risk, avoiding a variety of inflammatory pathologies of the urogenital system.

However, in the absence of strict medical indications, the parents make the decision to circumcise the boy to the age of puberty.

Circulation - as an operation is strongly recommended in the following situations:

• phimosis , up to a certain age, the narrowing of the foreskin is considered quite physiological, however, if the narrowing of the foreskin causes frequent inflammatory and infectious diseases of the lower genitourinary system, dysuric disorders are recommended to be circumcised;
• external manifestations of human papillomavirus in the form of genital warts;
• penile injuries associated with the risk of scar formation in the foreskin;
• disorders of sexual function associated with short duration of sexual intercourse, premature ejaculation due to increased sensitivity of the skin of the head of the penis;
• frequent inflammatory diseases associated with the inability to conduct thorough hygiene.

Contraindications to circumcision of the foreskin of the penis are:

• anatomical features of the shape and structure of the penis, when the risk of bleeding and other complications increases, or the manipulation is simply impossible;
• bleeding disorders;
• malignant lesions of the penis and organs of the reproductive system.

The circumcision operation is delayed until complete cure in acute infectious and inflammatory pathologies of the skin of the penis (balanoposthitis, venereal diseases), erosions and dermatoses of the epidermal cover of the penis.

With caution, the procedure is carried out in the later stages of paraphimosis, when the skin of the foreskin thickens and becomes more rough. In this case, appropriate preparation is required before surgery.

If the parents decided to circumcise the foreskin of the child, the procedure is contraindicated in newborn boys, with a variety of developmental pathologies, too small a penis size.

The procedure is determined by the doctor depending on the evidence, the wishes of the patient and the anatomical features of the structure of the penis.

The operation is performed in one of the following ways:

• Minimum circumcision . Designed to remove scars and small areas of scar tissue, without affecting the underlying layers of the epidermal cover.
• Free circumcision involves the removal of the foreskin, exposing the head of the penis, the skin is collected in the area of ​​the coronary sulcus, and the fold is visible even in the erect state.
• Full or tight circumcision is accompanied by complete removal of the foreskin without the formation of a fold in the coronary zone of the penis. With an erection, the scrotal skin is lifted upward, which some men find more aesthetically pleasing.
• High and low circulation . The difference between these procedures is in the technique of conducting. In the first case, the seam is formed at the base of the penis, in the second - in the area of ​​the beginning of the bridle.
• Moderate circulation . It is the most common type of surgical procedure. The head of the penis is completely exposed, but the suture is made in the region of the coronoid sulcus of the penis.

Before the surgery, the patient is referred for standard blood tests (general, coagulogram, sexually transmitted infections, HIV, syphilis, hepatitis). Circumcision is performed in a profile clinic under sterile operating conditions. The procedure itself takes about 30–40 minutes and is performed under local anesthesia or general anesthesia (depending on the wishes of the patient and the doctor’s recommendations).

During the manipulation, the surgeon gently cuts off the foreskin (or its part), sutures the wound with absorbable sutures, treats with disinfectants and bandages. The patient remains in the clinic for some time, and after the termination of the anesthesia can go home.

Circulation: reviews, possible complications and recovery period after surgery

If the procedure is followed, the risk of postoperative complications is minimal.

However, sometimes it is possible:

• bleeding;
• penis shape change;
• violation of the sensitivity of erogenous zones;
• damage to the head of the penis;
• the accession of a secondary bacterial infection.

After the procedure, the patient is warned about the need for regular dressings. Sometimes antibiotics are prescribed to prevent the inflammatory process, analgesics are indicated during the first days after surgery.

But in the overwhelming majority of cases, circumcision, the reviews of specialists about which indicate a high prophylactic efficacy of the procedure, is well tolerated and does not cause complications if the recommendations of the surgeon and urologist are observed. Doctors recommend this operation to most men, and patients find it useful not only from an aesthetic point of view, but also from a medical point of view.