What Causes Redness And Swelling On The Penis?

Posted on Mon, 19 Dec 2016

Question: I woke up this morning with swelling and redness on my penis. It feels very uncomfortable to use the bathroom. I am not aware of any behavior I might've done to cause this. Please advise as I'd like to get rid of this as soon as possible, thanks!

Answered by Dr. Rudina Balliu (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Inflammation of the skin , need to do some more examinations.

Detailed Answer:
Hi Dear user ! Thank you for posting here.
I read carefully your information

It's an inflammation of your penis,that may be caused of infection(bacterial/yeast) ,small injuries ,phimosis , soap or spry that you may have used.

To help with the discomfort I suggest :
-Clean the area especially the head gently with warm water and dry .
-Don't use tight underwear(avoid contact with clothes)
-drink plenty of fluid (you will have pain when you pee but it a necessary to clean inside your penis )
-don't use soap only clean water , you can take also salt warm bath or Apple cider vinegar.

These are something acute to do, a doctor has to see it as soon as possible ,and to do a swab test to find out the bacteria or yeast that may be the cause,check for phimosis (your skin dont retract during urination) and to start a medical treatment ( topical antibiotics or topical steroids,anti yest ) for a full treatment and to prevent any further complications.

Hope I have answered Your question.
If you have any further clarifications I will be happy to help .
Take Care !
Dr Rudina .

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. REMY KOSHY

Follow up: Dr. Rudina Balliu (5 hours later)

Thank you for your detailed answer. I went ahead and washed with warm water, which helped alleviate some of the irritation

I attached an image below so you can see the redness I am referring to at the end of my penis.

.

Answered by Dr. Rudina Balliu (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Follow the advices.

Detailed Answer:
Hi again !
Glad you feel a little better .
Can't see to much from the picture to confirm if it's phimosis or not , I can see the irritation but not to much .
You can check yourself :If the skin that cover the head of your penis ,can't retract(pull back) it's phimosis and also another thing that will help ,during urination the skin around the head will be swallen with urine inside.
In this case the irritation will go away by itself but if it doesn't or gets worse you can take some steroids cream such as hydrocortisone or small surgery for definitive treatment.

But if I were your treating doctor I would do some more test as below to rule out infection:
-If you are sexually active check for SST infection ( Clamydia, Gonorrhea , Thrichomonas in urine .)
-If you have burning during urination ( simple urine test)
Swab from the area for bacteria or yeast infection.

Meanwhile follow the advices that I wrote before (warm water , clean area , drink planty of water , no tight underwear..) and contact your local doctor to do the tests and to discuss For further treatment , he /she knows.

Hope it was helpful .
If you do not have any further clariffications, you can close the discussion and rate the answer .
Thank you !
Take Care .
Dr Rudina.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Rudina Balliu (1 hour later)

I've never tried pulling the skin back before. It always looks like it does in the picture

How far back is it supposed to go?.

Answered by Dr. Rudina Balliu (23 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
The skin should not cover the orificifium.

Detailed Answer:
Hi again !
You should be able to see the orificium ( the hole where the urine comes out) .Try something else , see if the skin (foreskin) cover the hole where your urine comes out in a normal situation and during urination.
In phimosis the skin cover the orificifium (hole ) and cause irritation of the skin .Normally this part of the penis should not be covered by the skin.

Take Care !

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Rudina Balliu (1 hour later)

I am not able to see my orificium in a normal situation. Is that bad?

I tried pulling back the skin and was able to see the orificium but I'm nervous to pull it back any further.

Do you see the new picture I attached?

Answered by Dr. Rudina Balliu (31 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
if the irritation dont go away or get worse , need examinations

Detailed Answer:
Hi again!
Yes now i can see from the picture !

If you keep having pain , swalleing and difficult urination go to your local doctor to do the SST test and to take some hyrdocortisone cream .

Probably you need to do circumcision if the irritation repeats and get worse.

You should go to your local doctor , don't worry, as it happens to a lot of people, he/she will do some further examinations to confirm the diagnosis and together you will discuss about the treatment.
Unfortunately, I can"t say more without the detailed examinations in this regard.

Take Care

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Arnab Banerjee