It is usual that a baby's foreskin will not retract (pull back) and the foreskin may not actually fully retract for years. Mothers don't have personal experience of how to clean a boy's foreskin and are often unsure of what to do.
The foreskin is attached to the underlying tissue of the penis. Over time, this naturally separates so that eventually the foreskin will fully retract. The cells that are shed when the foreskin separates make a white debris called smegma. This is expelled through the opening in the foreskin.
White Convertible Crib
The following guideline will help you:
Firstly, never force the foreskin back. Forcing may cause a tear on the lining of the foreskin. Not only will this hurt your baby, but when the tear heals, the healed tissue will be tighter. If this keeps happening, your baby will end up with a tight foreskin which will not retract (pull back).
When you are bathing your baby, gently wash the penis. Remove any secretions (smegma) that may have gathered at the tip of the foreskin. Wash any soap away. Do try and wash inside the foreskin - just wash away anything that is visible
As your little boy grows, teach him to gently wash his penis during bathing but never to force the foreskin back.
Eventually, the foreskin will fully retract. At that time, which may be about puberty, teach your son to gently pull the foreskin back fully while bathing to clean it. The foreskin should then be pulled back in its normal position
There are no medical reasons for routine circumcision. Most boys are circumcised for religious reasons.
Sometimes, the foreskin is tight and balloons out when your son pees. Occasionally, this condition (phimosis) will require circumcision. If your son has a very tight foreskin at age 5 years, he may need a circumcision. However, this can be avoided by non-surgical management with steroid cream. The steroid cream (usually Betamethasone) is applied to the tip of the foreskin three or four times a day for a month. Most boys who use this treatment will not require circumcision, which involves an operation with an anesthetic.
Occasionally, boys will get an infection under the foreskin, called balanitis. If this keeps happening, there will likely be some scarring of the inside of the foreskin which cause a tightness that may require circumcision. Again, washing away any smegma that you see may prevent this happening. Steroid cream used in the manner described above may also prevent the need for circumcision.
Occasionally the smegma, that is formed by the debris of cells as the foreskin separates from the underlying tissue, will cause a collection under the skin lining the penis. This is called a smegma pearl and looks like a white collection (a bit like a pearl) on the shaft of the penis. Don't worry as this will eventually disappear by itself and no treatment is required.
Circumcision involves cutting the foreskin off. This involves an operation and that required an anesthetic - these have a risk and so the decision to have a circumcision should involve a risk assessment - only undertake the operation if the benefit will outweigh the risk.
There is evidence that circumcised boys get less urinary tract infections than uncircumcised boys, but the risk of urinary tract infection is so low in most boys, that being uncircumcised doesn't matter. The risk of the operation for circumcision cancels out any benefit from preventing a urinary tract infection in most boys. Very few boys get a urinary tract infection, circumcised or not.
Careful attention to cleaning the penis and foreskin without forcing it back as outlined above should prevent your baby son having any problems. If in doubt, leave it alone. The foreskin will naturally retract in time.