Balanitis is inflammation of the glans penis. Balanitis involving the foreskin or prepuce is termed balanoposthitis. The most common complication of balanitis is phimosis, or inability to retract the foreskin from the glans penis.[1] (http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic51.htm) Balanitis afflicts young boys generally only where a difficult to retract tight foreskin is present. It is generally believed to be more frequent in uncircumcised boys.[2] (http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/9339/10515.html)

Uncircumcised men with poor personal hygiene are most affected by balanitis. Lack of aeration and irritation because of smegma and discharge surrounding the glans penis causes inflammation and edema. Adherence of the foreskin to the inflamed and edematous glans penis causes phimosis.[3] (http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic51.htm)

Inflammation has numerous causes, including irritation by environmental substances, physical trauma, and infection by a wide variety of pathogens, including bacteria, virus, yeast, or fungus — each of which require a particular treatment.

Good medical practice includes careful diagnosis with the aid of a good patient history, swabs and cultures, and pathologic examination of a biopsy. Only then can the proper treatment be prescribed.[4] (http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/balanitis/edwards1/)

Many studies of balanitis do not examine the subjects' genital washing habits; a 1993 study by Birley et al. did so and found that excessive genital washing with soap may be a strong contributing factor to balanitis.[5] (http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/balanitis/birley/)

Escala and Rickwood, in a 1989 examination of 100 cases of balanitis in childhood, concluded: "[T]he risk in any individual, uncircumcised boy appears to be no greater than 4%." [6] (http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/balanitis/escala1/).

Zoon's Balanitis

Zoon's Balanitis also know as Balanitis Circumscripta Plasmacellularis or plasma cell balanitis (PCB) is an idiopathic, rare, benign penile dermatosis [7] (http://www.emedicine.com/derm/topic45.htm) for which circumcision will suffice for the management and treatment of. [8] (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10101891&dopt=Abstract)[9] (http://www.emedicine.com/derm/topic45.htm)

External links

• Balanitis - InteliHealth (http://www.intelihealth.com/IH/ihtIH/WSIHW000/9339/10515.html)

• Zoon's Balanitis - InteliHealth (http://www.emedicine.com/derm/topic45.htm)

• Edwards S. Balanitis and balanoposthitis: a review. (http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/balanitis/edwards1/) Genitourin Med 1996;72(3):155-9.

• Edwards S. (for the Clinical Effectiveness Group) National guideline on the management of balanitis (http://www.bashh.org/guidelines/2002/balanitis_0901b.pdf). Association for Genitourinary Medicine (U.K.) and the Medical Society for the Study of Venereal Diseases (U.K.), 2001.

Images of balanitis

[10] (http://zdravi.004.cz/z-balanitis/balanitis-cand.jpg)[11] (http://www.stdservices.on.net/images/std/balanitis/slide10.jpg)[12] (http://www.atlasdermatologico.com.br/ListaImagens/Balanitis_Candidomycetica1.JPG)[13] (http://www.healthcentral.com/mhc/fullsize/1779.jpg)