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Balanitis

Balanitis · Balanitida

male only

What it is

Inflammation of the glans, common in uncircumcised boys and men; causes include thrush (often with diabetes), bacteria, irritants and skin disease.

Symptoms & signs

  • Red, sore, itchy glans
  • discharge under the foreskin
  • odour
  • tight foreskin
  • pain on passing urine

🚩 Get help if…

  • call 112 / 911 now Foreskin stuck pulled back with a swollen tip
  • call 112 / 911 now Unable to pass urine
  • see a doctor soon Redness spreading up the penis with fever
  • see a doctor soon Sore that does not heal within weeks

Where it strikes

Medical treatment

  • Swab; urine or blood glucose
  • clotrimazole cream for thrush
  • antibiotics for bacterial infection
  • mild steroid cream for dermatitis
  • biopsy of persistent patches (lichen sclerosus, precancer)
  • circumcision if it keeps returning

Natural & lifestyle

  • Wash gently each day with water and dry well; avoid soap
  • treat a partner's thrush
  • control diabetes

Emerging & experimental

  • Topical calcineurin inhibitors for Zoon's balanitis
  • laser treatment

Alternative, off-label & anecdotal

Approaches used outside the guidelines, with what their supporters report and what testing has found so far.

  • Tea tree oil — may irritate; untested anecdotal / traditional
  • Coconut oil — untested anecdotal / traditional

ICD codes