Manual for Male Circumcision under Local Anaesthesia

Male circumcision under local anaesthesia
Version 3.1 (Dec09)
DRESSING
Irrespective of the method of circumcision, a standard penile dressing
technique is used.
Check that there is no bleeding. Minor bleeding from a skin edge will
often stop after five minutes of pressure with a gauze. Once all
bleeding has stopped, place a piece of petroleum-jelly-impregnated
gauze (tulle gras) around the wound. Place a sterile dry gauze over
this, and secure in position with adhesive tape (Fig 5.41). Take care
not to apply the dressing too tightly, as it could restrict the blood supply
and cause necrosis of the glans.
Fig. 5.41 Standard dressing.
The dressing should be left in position no longer than 48 hours. Either
the patient can return to the clinic where the circumcision was
performed, or go to another clinic for postoperative follow-up and
removal of the dressing. If the dressing has dried out, it should be
gently dabbed with antiseptic solution (aqueous cetrimide) until it
softens. It can then be removed gently (Fig 5.42). It is important not to
disrupt the wound by pulling at a dressing that has dried to the wound.
A
B
C
Fig. 5.42. A: after removal of the gauze swab.,B: using cetrimide to
soak off a paraffin gauze that has dried to the wound. C: appearance of
a wound healing normally 48 hours after the operation
Surgical procedures for adults and adolescents Chapter 5-31