# 6-year-old son, pain complaints, skin bridge, foreskin restoration?



## user_name (Jun 8, 2005)

My son is circ'd. (I got to make the no-vax call, husband got the circumcision decision. I felt guilty for a long time; had to let it go & forgive myself b/c what's done is done.)

I've always thought there was something unusual about my son's surgery (a healed cut and a piece of skin connecting the penis shaft and the head), but he was my firstborn. So not only was I not confident about my opinion, I didn't press the issue with his surgeon, who told me everything was normal and healing fine. Doc didn't think I should be Googling about it and worrying myself over nothing. grrr to say the least.

6 years later...There *is* a mark/scar on the tip of my son's penis that my circ'd husband doesn't have, so it's pretty clear it was a nick. In addition, he definitely has a skin bridge. I checked this out after he complained of it hurting. [gut check...did I really forgive myself? I'm not so sure...*tears that he's hurting!!]

Anyways, I was looking up some info on the possibility of a relationship between a skin bridge and his pain, the need for (or not) repairing a skin bridge, and stumbled upon some threads regarding foreskin restoration.

Do you think repairing the skin bridge now would be more likely to prevent further problems...or cause them (psychologically speaking)?

Is a foreskin restoration something anyone would consider for a child? ...in conjunction with repairing a skin bridge? ...or is it best to leave that up to him when he gets old enough to make decisions on his own about these things? Would it be more successful if he's younger vs. older?

I don't trust doctors about this issue...Looking for advice...please help!


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## MCatLvrMom2A&X (Nov 18, 2004)

My dh has a skin bridge and if he isnt very careful it gets really sore and can bust if the skin is to dry when he gets an erection. My dh dosnt want it fixed even though he was in pain for several weeks because of it.

Unlike the foreskin if things get under there it can be really hard to get them out ie lint body fluids and they can cause irritation so when he baths he needs to be extra vigilant about swishing his penis around. My dh has actually started using a blue bulb syringe to clean it out since the problem got so bad.

I honestly believe it should be your ds's decision as to whether to fix it or not.

Restoration is definitely not for children there is just to much work involved and to much manipulation of the penis for it to be an option. It is always a possibility for him when he is grown though.

Can he point out exactly where the pain is? If the pain is coming from the bridge it probably has to do with how tight the skin gets or if there is irritation there then it isnt getting clean enough under the bridge.


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## user_name (Jun 8, 2005)

Thanks so much. I actually came back here to delete my post after searching more about what a foreskin restoration involves -- yeah, definitely not for kids. Before I just thought that it was a medical procedure that could be done at the same time as fixing a skin bridge, and then maybe maintenance that would go along with wound healing. Oops.

It helps to know your dh, as a grown man, doesn't even want a skin bridge fixed. DS did point out to me where it hurt, but more like just a "down there" point than a particular location. There is a space, though, under the skin, where I can understand what you mean about hygiene. For now, I think my dh can help ds w/ cleaning it and we'll just stay tuned to any voiced concerns ds might have in the future.

Thanks again!

I'll go ahead and not delete this in case there's someone else like me who had never even heard of foreskin restoration before today, though.


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## DJay (Sep 10, 2006)

User_name, I'd agree that foreskin restoration is not for children, but it is something to keep in mind to suggest to son when he is an adult, should he want to do that for himself. I'll PM with more information.


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## Ron_Low (May 11, 2007)

Just like circumcising, restoring should not be imposed upon anyone.

But you can help a child prevent progressive damage to the glans and mucosa by wearing his surving skin rolled forward over the glans. This involves passively retaining the skin, not actively tugging on the skin. I know parents who have helped even kids in diapers with retaining.

The youngest kids I ever knew of who used active tugging devices were 7-year-old French cousins.


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## Anastasiya (Jun 13, 2006)

Are you sure it's a skin bridge you are looking at and not the intact frenulum? Docs today often leave the frenulum intact during a circumcision, whereas docs in the past cut that out, as well. It looks like a connective piece of tissue in the underside of the penis.

And could the scar at the tip be an ulceration, like meatal stenosis forming? Is it right by the urethra?


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