Circumcision
Removal of the foreskin for selected medical, hygiene or personal reasons after appropriate consultation
What is circumcision?
Circumcision is the removal of the foreskin, the sleeve of skin that covers the head of the penis. Your surgeon takes the skin back to a chosen level, controls the small blood vessels along the cut edge, and joins the two skin edges with dissolvable stitches.
There is more than one way of doing it. In the conventional method the foreskin is cut away and the edges hand-stitched. In the stapler method a circular device holds the tissue while it cuts and seals the edge in a single action, which shortens the operation and usually means less bleeding. Laser is a third variation on the cutting step. All of them remove the same tissue and leave a scar line running around the shaft, and your surgeon will recommend one based on how much skin is involved and on your own preference.
How much foreskin is removed is a decision, and it is worth making it out loud before the day. Ask your surgeon what they are planning and say what you want.
What it involves
This is a Day Care operation under local anaesthetic. Your surgeon injects around the base of the penis to numb it, which stings for a few seconds and then works completely; you stay awake and feel pressure and movement and no pain. Children are usually given a general anaesthetic instead.
The operation itself takes twenty to thirty minutes. You are on a table with the area cleaned and draped, and a screen or a conversation is the usual arrangement for a patient who would rather not watch.
Afterwards a light dressing goes on and you rest for an hour or two while the team checks there is no bleeding. You will be asked to pass urine before you leave, and you go home the same day. Bring loose clothing, arrange for somebody to take you home, and expect to be given painkillers, an antibiotic and instructions about the dressing.
Recovery
The first forty-eight hours are the sore ones, and regular paracetamol handles most of it. Swelling of the skin at the scar line is normal and peaks at about three days, then takes two to three weeks to settle completely.
Most men are back at desk work in two to three days. Avoid cycling, gym work and anything that involves lifting for two weeks, and keep the area dry for the first forty-eight hours before returning to gentle washing with water. Loose cotton underwear that holds everything upright is more comfortable than nothing.
Sexual activity, including masturbation, waits four weeks. This is the instruction most often broken and the commonest reason a stitch line opens. Morning erections will tug at the stitches during the first fortnight, and that is expected and not a sign anything is wrong.
The stitches dissolve on their own over three to four weeks. The head of the penis will feel more sensitive for a few weeks while it gets used to being uncovered, and that settles.
Questions about circumcision
How much time will I need off work?
Two to three days for desk work, and about a week if your job involves being on your feet all day, lifting or riding a two-wheeler. Most of the soreness is in the first forty-eight hours and is controlled with paracetamol. Swelling at the scar line peaks around day three and settles over two to three weeks, so you will be back at work while it still looks swollen, and that is expected. Wear loose trousers and supportive underwear. Avoid gym work and cycling for two weeks, and sexual activity for four.
Will it change how sex feels?
The head of the penis is uncovered afterwards, so it is noticeably more sensitive for the first few weeks and then the skin toughens and that settles. Most men report no meaningful difference in sexual function once healed, and a minority describe sensation as changed, in either direction. Studies have not shown a consistent effect on satisfaction for men or their partners. Some men find intercourse lasts longer. Wait the full four weeks before resuming, since early activity is the commonest reason a stitch line separates and that adds weeks to the healing.
Is the stapler method better than stitches?
The stapler cuts and seals the edge in one action, so the operation is shorter, there is usually less bleeding, and the early swelling is often less. The device costs more, and the ring of staples stays on for one to two weeks before separating, which some men find uncomfortable to look at and to sleep with. Conventional hand-stitching costs less, takes longer in theatre and gives the surgeon more control over exactly how much skin is removed. Both give a comparable result at three months. Ask your surgeon which they do more of, since experience matters more than the device.
Other urology treatments
Treatment of kidney and urinary tract stones based on their size, location, symptoms and likelihood of passing naturally
Day CareManagement of benign prostate enlargement that causes urinary difficulty, frequency or incomplete bladder emptying
Day CareTalk to a care coordinator about circumcision
Leave a number and a care coordinator calls you back with what the treatment involves and which hospital it would be at. They book a consult only if you want one