Introduction Some men with corrected hypospadias perceive their penile appearance to be abnormal, although health professionals consider these results satisfactory. Aim The aim of this study was to investigate how relevant women consider single aspects of penile appearance to be. Moreover, we studied whether women perceive hypospadias-affected surgically repaired genitals (HASRGs) to be as normal-looking as circumcised genitals and identified the most relevant predictors that influence whether a penis is perceived as normal. Methods In this cross-sectional study, 105 women in different age groups (age range: 16–20, 25–30, and 40–45 years) completed a standardized questionnaire. Main Outcome Measures Participants had to rate the importance of eight penile aspects and to indicate how normal they found the appearance of standardized photos of 10 HASRGs and of 10 circumcised genitals. Furthermore, they were asked about demographic characteristics and their sexuality. Results Results showed that women considered the position and shape of the meatus as the least important penile aspect. Furthermore, results showed that HASRGs with distal hypospadias were perceived to be as normal-looking as circumcised genitals, whereas genitals with more proximal hypospadias were perceived as significantly less normal. However, the difference need not be considered clinically relevant, as the effect size was small. Observer-related predictors of a more positive perception of HASRGs were higher age, higher sexual interest, and perceiving the general cosmetic penile appearance as more important and penile length as less important. Conclusions Overall, women were found to consider the “position and shape of the meatus” as the least important penile aspect. These findings may stimulate reflections regarding the relevance of surgical correction of the meatus in minor forms of hypospadias. In addition, this study indicates that women perceived genitals of men with distal operated hypospadias (which represents the majority of hypospadias) to be as normal as nonaffected, circumcised genitals.
Objective: Hypospadias is a common penile malformation, in which the urethral opening is on the underside of the penis. It is usually surgically corrected in early childhood. Severe types of hypospadias are corrected to solve functional problems. Mild types are mainly operated to achieve a better cosmetic result under the assumption that surgery improves psychosexual adjustment and quality of life. However, data on the outcome of non-operated men is scarce and therefore, this assumption is not evidence based. This study compares psychosexual outcome of men with non-corrected hypospadias to men without a genital malformation. Design and Method: In an ongoing cross-sectional survey, 21 men with noncorrected hypospadias (mean age: 48.71 years, SD: 10.33) and a control group of 21 age matched, non-affected men (mean age: 48.05 years, SD: 9.72) were asked to answer a penile self-perception score (PPS) and a questionnaire regarding their psychosexual adjustment. Results: Men with non-corrected hypospadias and controls reported the same level of sexual satisfaction and number of sexual partners. Men with non-corrected hypospadias were neither more often ashamed nor more often bothered because of their penile appearance. However, they had significantly less positive PPS. Conclusions: Although men with non-corrected hypospadias had an impaired penile self-perception, they were neither ashamed nor bothered due to their penile appearance and they reported the same level of sexual satisfaction as non-affected men. These results suggest that there is a subgroup of men with non-severe types of hypospadias, who do not suffer if left without surgical correction for their hypospadias in childhood.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.