Anatomy of the Prepuce

Abstract

Whatever this part of the body will be kept and cared, or it will be removed and discard, we have to confess that the prepuce is exquisitely designed, highly vascularised and innervated with a complex of specialised erogenous structures that are vital to natural and normal sexual function. Anatomy of the prepuce is unique from many aspects; firstly, as the prepuce removed early from a majorities of infants in many communities, so its anatomy is not well known among many physicians. Secondly, the prepuce after delivery is in continuous development till puberty, so its anatomy is diverse at different stages of life, and lastly preputial skin and muscles had no underneath attachments, so the prepuce have to contract, retract and return back to cover the glans through a sequence of sloping muscle fibers. It is astounding that the complex nature of the prepuce (or the fact that it is not a simple fold of skin) was not described until 1991 and this did not appear in the mainstream medical media until 1996.