ABSTRACT
The skin of the external genitalia drains to the inguinal lymph glands. The scrotal contents, however, develop in the para-aortic area in the back wall of the abdomen. Phimosis is a narrowing of the end of the prepuce (foreskin), which prevents its retraction over the glans penis. It may be congenital, or it may develop due to scarring of the skin following infection or trauma. It is normal to have a non-retractile foreskin in early childhood. Even when the foreskin retracts, adhesions between the foreskin and glans may persist into the early teens. In a child, gently draw back the foreskin and look at the tip. In a normal but narrow foreskin in a small child, the orifice will be small, but the skin will appear normal. This occurs when the narrowing of the prepuce is just sufficiently tight for it to get stuck behind the glans penis, often during an erection.
