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Foreskin development before adolescence in 2149 schoolboys
Author(s) -
HSIEH TENGFU,
CHANG CHAOGHSIAN,
CHANG SHIHSAN
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
international journal of urology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.172
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1442-2042
pISSN - 0919-8172
DOI - 10.1111/j.1442-2042.2006.01449.x
Subject(s) - foreskin , medicine , incidence (geometry) , hydrocele , surgery , physics , genetics , optics , biology , cell culture
Background: We examined the external genitalia of 2149 elementary schoolboys in the suburban area of Taichung in Taiwan for an understanding of foreskin development before adolescence. Methods: The study’s subjects comprised 692 first‐grade boys, 725 fourth‐grade boys, and 732 seventh‐grade boys. The foreskin’s condition was classified as: type I (normal prepuce), type II (adhesion of prepuce), type III (partial phimosis), type IV (phimosis) and type V (circumcised foreskin). Other abnormalities of the genitalia also were recorded. All of the examinations were performed by the same urologist. Results: The incidence of type I foreskin was 8.2% in first‐grade boys, 21.0% in fourth‐grade boys, and 58.1% in seventh‐grade boys. The incidence of type IV foreskin was 17.1% in first‐grade boys, 9.7% in fourth‐grade boys, and 1.2% in seventh‐grade boys. Only one boy had balanoposthitis. Other abnormalities included inguinal hernia ( n = 2), hydrocele ( n = 12), cryptorchitism ( n = 8), varicocele ( n = 22), and subcoronal‐type hypospadia ( n = 1). Conclusions: Physiological phimosis declines with age. Most boys with phimosis in this study did not require treatment.