Circumcise early to avoid injury or death says local doctor
It is recommended that parents who plan to have their baby circumcised talk to the doctor who will perform the procedure to find out all there is to know about it.
POLOKWANE – For the longest time, circumcision has been viewed as something with religious and cultural attachment. Particularly in African cultures, circumcision has been seen as a right of passage into manhood.
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As it draws closer to the time where young men are send to traditional circumcision schools across Limpopo, Dr Derrick Mabasa, advised parents to rather circumcise their children soon after birth instead of at circumcision schools. This due to the risk of injury and death.
Having your baby circumcised is a personal decision although it is recommended that a male gets circumcised at some point or another in their lives. What many parents who would like to have their children circumcised can consider is doing the circumcision as soon as possible after birth instead of waiting for them to go to circumcision school to have it done.
Mabasa explained to BONUS the circumcision procedure for a baby is not so different from that of an adult. “The idea behind the circumcision is the same with the baby’s foreskin, which covers the head of the penis, being removed. In the instance of babies, it is done two or three days after birth, unless if the baby is born premature or has hereditary health issues that may affect the procedure,” he explained.
It is recommended that parents who plan to have their baby circumcised talk to the doctor who will perform the procedure to find out all there is to know about it. It is only after you are satisfied that you know all there is to know about the procedure that you can sign an informed consent form, giving your permission for the surgery. When you decide to have the procedure done on a newborn, he’ll be awake during the procedure. He will be placed on his back with restraints to keep his arms and legs still. The doctor will clean the penis area with antiseptic, then inject an anesthetic to the base of the penis to ease the pain. A clamp will be attached to the penis then the doctor will clip off the foreskin. The clamp will remain on and only fall off later. The doctor will then apply ointment like petroleum jelly to the penis and wrap it in gauze.
All in all, the procedure takes about 10 minutes and if all goes according to plan, the baby should be ready to go home within a few hours. After the procedure, the baby can be fussy and irritable, as can be expected. During the recovery time, it is important to hold him carefully as not to put pressure on his penis. Swelling and redness can be expected, but this is normal and should go away in a few days. It is vital that hygiene is observed at this time to keep away infections.
In most instances, babies recover from the procedure without problems, but there is the one percent that develops complications. Keep a constant eye on your baby’s recovery and contact the doctor if there are any symptoms that worry you. “It’s okay to see drops of blood, you should only be concerned if it is more than just a few drops. Also be weary of a bad odour coming from the wound because it could be a warning of an infection. The swelling should be going down within a few days, if you don’t see any improvement in the swelling and redness, it should be a cause for concern,” Mabasa added.
