Common Misconceptions About Circumcision

Circumcision is a surgical procedure performed to remove the foreskin from the penis hood. In the past, parents feared circumcising their children early because they thought it was dangerous. However, it was just a misconception, and there is no danger in circumcising young children. Still, there is so much that parents do not know about circumcision, which, unfortunately, often leads to mistakes. This article highlights the most common misconceptions surrounding circumcision.

Early Circumcision Is Mandatory for a Clean Penis

Most parents believe that the only reason they should circumcise their kids early is to make it easy to clean a child's penis. However, nothing could be further from the truth because, unlike the foreskin in older children, the foreskin in young is fused to the penis hood. It is essential because the foreskin helps keep feces away. Therefore, parents are advised not to retract the foreskin of a toddler since it is painful. If you circumcise your child 24 hours after birth, always remember to wipe off their penis with every diaper change. If you do not, your bundle of joy will suffer from infections, which could prevent faster healing.

Problematic Circumcision Is Irreparable

As mentioned earlier, most parents fear circumcising their child early because they believe that mistakes might leave their kid with a permanent deformity. However, it is not true because surgeons who perform circumcision procedures on toddlers are experienced and qualified. Still, some circumcision procedures do not go according to plan, but it does not mean that any emerging problems are unfixable. In fact, circumcision errors can be addressed even when a child becomes a teenager. For instance, if a surgeon removed very little foreskin from a toddler's penis, the parent can schedule a reconstructive procedure later to cut off the excess foreskin.

Circumcision Requires General Anesthesia

Circumcision is a minor procedure and does not require general anesthesia, which is mainly reserved for major procedures. However, it does not stop some parents from asking surgeons to administer general anesthesia to their children during the process. Notably, administering general anesthesia requires absolute care because it can be dangerous to some people, including children. Moreover, general anesthesia is expensive and not suitable for a procedure that usually lasts a few minutes. Instead, surgeons prefer to administer local anesthesia to numb the area being operated on (penis). Local anesthesia guarantees a painless procedure, and the best part is that the numbness can last a couple of hours.

Talk to a medical professional to learn about circumcision.