Complications of Genital Piercings

Abstract

Objectives: Genital piercing has become a social reality in our present day culture. Its practice is not limited by sexual preference, gender, age, or background. There are a variety of complications related to the piercing of both male and female genitalia that can affect the individual and his or her sexual partner. Currently, men and women with genital piercings report feeling uncomfortable discussing piercing care or treatment of complications with their healthcare provider and instead seek advice from nonmedical sources. It is therefore imperative for healthcare providers to be more aware of genital piercing practices. The purpose of this review is to familiarize healthcare providers with genital piercings, including common jewelry, motivations for getting genital piercings, and potential complications, so that they are better able to care for genitally pierced patients. Methods: A Pubmed search of existing literature using the terms genital piercing, complications of genital piercing, clitoral piercing, penile piercing, and Prince Albert along with references from bibliographies of papers from the literature search until September 2013 were used to in this review. Results: The most common genital piercing for men and women are the Prince Albert and vertical clitoral hood respectively. Most people who seek genital piercings do so to enhance sexual expression and improve sexual pleasure. The most common rings used are the barbell, the curved barbell, and the captive ring. In studies that surveyed men and women with genital piercings, over 50% of respondents report suffering from complications. Reported structural complications of genital piercings, more common in men than women, include bleeding, site tears, strictures, fistulas, keloids, scars, urethral damage, and genital swelling. Other complications include infection, injury to sexual partner, and interference with barrier contraception. Potential complications of genital piercings are tearing during childbirth or during sexual intercourse, difficulty inserting a foley catheter, and fibrosis or numbness at the piercing site. Conclusions: Genital piercing is an increasingly common trend. This review provides a guide for providers to increase awareness of genital piercings in order to better offer appropriate counseling and treatment, which can lead to better care for their patients with genital piercings.