It's best to avoid full-body bathing until the second day after surgery, but sponge baths are fine. After the second day, you can shower or bathe as normal, but don't scrub the incision site — just let the soapy warm water run over the incision and pat it dry.
It's important to keep the tip of your penis clean. The area should be kept dry for 48 hours after the operation. After this, take warm baths or showers once or twice a day. Don't use bubble bath or scented soaps, as these may irritate your healing wound.
Given this, it's normal to wonder if baby's circumcision wound also needs to stay dry. Luckily, it's okay for the wound to get wet—and it will when baby urinates.
Wash the area daily with warm water and pat it dry. Don't use hydrogen peroxide or alcohol, which can slow healing. You may cover the area with a thin layer of petroleum jelly, such as Vaseline, and gauze bandage if it weeps or rubs against clothing. Change the bandage every day.
After 24 hours, your son may bathe or shower. Don't rub the area, but squeeze water from the washcloth over the site. Do not wash off the white or yellow colored drainage that is a normal part of the healing process. It will go away as the circumcision heals.
The same basic principles apply whether you have a foreskin or have been circumcised. Gently wash your penis each day. Carefully pull back and clean underneath the foreskin, as well as the tip of your penis (the glans) using only water and a very gentle soap. Don't scrub this sensitive area.
Circumcision, whereby the foreskin is removed from the penis, can cause the urethral opening to narrow, making it difficult to urinate.
At first, the penis will appear red (picture 4). In a few days, a soft yellow scab will develop. This is normal and will go away in a few days. During this process, parents should watch for worsening redness, swelling, bleeding (larger than a quarter-size on the diaper) or drainage that does not go away.
Don't use soap on this area, as it can irritate the skin. After cleaning, always gently pull the foreskin back over the glans of the penis.
You should avoid getting the area wet for the first 3 days, you can then take a shower bath but do not bath for 3 weeks.
To reduce the effect of night erections pulling on the stitches during the first few days, empty your bladder before retiring and a few times during the night. Do not lie on your back, but on your side. It may be helpful to draw your knees up a bit into a more foetal position.
Tight clothing will make him uncomfortable because the exposed pink glans is very sensitive initially. This will settle down in few days. Normal soft cotton underpants may be worn. By putting some Vaseline inside the pants, you will prevent his wound site from sticking to his underclothes.
You should remove the bandage on the second day after surgery if it hasn't already fallen off. Removing the dressing can be easier if you first sit in the bath or shower for 10 minutes, then unravel the bandage completely.
The extra skin covers the head of the penis, and it can cause mild adhesions or completely cover the penis to the point where it no longer looks circumcised. It depends on how much extra skin is left behind. The redundant skin also can be uneven with more extra skin on one side versus the other side.
Usually, after the circumcision has healed, the penis requires no additional care. Occasionally a small piece of the foreskin remains. You should pull back this skin gently each time the child is bathed.
However, circumcision does not increase the penile size, and a meta-analysis revealed that circumcision does not affect premature ejaculation10.
This pain often gets better in 3 or 4 days. But it may last for up to 2 weeks. Even though your baby's penis will likely start to feel better after 3 or 4 days, it may look worse. The penis often starts to look like it's getting better after about 7 to 10 days.
Your child's glans may have off-white or yellowish patches in the first few days after surgery. These are a type of scab and are completely normal. Two or three days after the circumcision, the skin may look green and yellow. This is a sign of normal healing, not pus.
There is some evidence that circumcision has health benefits, including: Less risk of urinary tract infections. A reduced risk of some sexually transmitted diseases in men. Protection against penile cancer and a lower risk of cervical cancer in female sex partners.
It usually takes at least 10 days for your penis to heal after circumcision. You'll probably be advised to take at least 1 week off work to recover.
Penile adhesions in circumcised boys occur when the penile shaft skin adheres to the glans of the penis. There are three types of penile adhesions: glanular adhesions, penile skin bridges and cicatrix.
Normal Circumcision Healing
The incision starts off red and tender. The tenderness should be much less by day 3. The scab at the incision line comes off in 7 to 10 days.
After the anaesthetic, your child can start eating a light diet such as sandwiches, pasta, soup or jelly. Avoid fatty or junk food.
Urine will not hurt the circumcision and should not cause pain since surgery was not performed on the area where the urine comes out. Urine is sterile and does not cause infections. It is not unusual to see a small amount of bleeding from the incision for the first day or two.