Glans Penis Piercings

Summary

• Healing Time: 2 to 6 months
• Do not touch your piercing, or let others touch it while it is healing
• Clean your healing piercing only once a day, with antibacterial soap
• Never use alcohol swabs, Betadine or hydrogen peroxide to clean your piercing
• Ideally soak your piercing in saline solution daily
• Never use alcohol swabs or Betadine to clean your piercing
• Take care when swimming, avoid spas
• Pain, redness and unusual discharge may be due to infection. Consult your piercer or a physician if you develop any of these symptoms
• Wear loose clothing
• Take vitamin C and zinc to maximise your healing
• Wait till your piercing is healed before changing jewelry yourself

Care Routine

• Do not touch your piercing unless you are cleaning it. Unwashed hands carry bacteria and your piercing is a point where these bacteria can penetrate below your skin and cause an infection.
• While healing, your piercing will need to be cleaned once daily - whilst showering is ideal. You will need to use an antibacterial soap that contains either chloroxylenol/PCMX (e.g. Provon) or triclosan (e.g. Cusson’s Carex). Otherwise find a mild soap with not more than 0.25% triclosan (i.e. 2.5 mg/mL).

  The step-by-step procedure is:

1. Wash your hands with antibacterial soap.
2. Wet the piercing with plain water.
3. Put a few drops of antibacterial soap on the piercing and work them into a lather with a cotton bud.
4. Try to loosen any crusted discharge and float it off the jewelry and your skin with the cotton bud.
5. Leave the antibacterial soap on the piercing for two minutes while rotating the jewelry back and forth, allowing the disinfectant to penetrate the piercing.
6. Rinse with water and air dry thoroughly.

• Also of proven effectiveness is soaking the penis in saline solution for 10 - 15 minutes each day. Put 50mls of Saline solution in a small paper cup (ideally contact lens sterile saline solution, or alternatively a pinch of salt in a glass of cooled boiled water). Afterwards, dry thoroughly with a clean tissue or cotton bud.
  
  

Piercing Options and Jewelry Choices

• Ampallang
  
  1. Also called a "palang" piercing.
  2. This piercing passes horizontally through the glans of the penis. It may or may not traverse the urethra. It is possible to have more than one ampallang piercing simultaneously.
  3. Healing time 4 - 6 months
  4. Suitable Jewelry Types
     • Straight barbells, initially of 14g and then increasing in thickness as desired.
• Apradavya
  
  1. This piercing passes vertically through the glans of the penis, usually in the midline traversing the urethra.
  2. Healing time 4 - 6 months
  3. Suitable Jewelry Types
     • Straight barbells, initially of 14g and then increasing in thickness as desired.
• Dydoe
  
  1. This piercing, which is often done in pairs or sets, passes through the coronal ridge of the glans penis along the long axis of the penis.
  2. Dydoe piercings are prone to migration and eventual loss of the piercing.
  3. Healing time 2 - 4 months
  4. Suitable Jewelry Types
     • Curved bar bells of 14g thickness. The length must be measured for the individual.
• Prince Albert
  
  1. Said to be named after Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, this piercing passes through the eye of the penis, enters the wall of the urethra, passes downward through the head of the penis and leaves just behind the head at the frenulum.
  2. Healing time 2 - 4 months
  3. Suitable Jewelry Types
     • Rings
     • Circular bar bells
     • Initially 14g jewelry is used, but most people find 12g is the minimum comfortable thickness, and some people will migrate up as far as 00 jewelry.
• Reverse Prince Albert
  
  1. This piercing passes through the eye of the penis, enters the wall of the urethra, passes upward through the head of the penis and leaves just behind the head on the upper surface.
  2. Healing time 2 - 4 months
  3. Suitable Jewelry Types
     • Curved bar bells
     • Initially 14g jewelry is used, but most people find 12g is the minimum comfortable thickness.
  
  
• Suitable Materials
  Surgical Stainless Steel, 18 carat gold, titanium, niobium.
  Do not use 9 carat gold, silver (which can stain the tissues permanently), or gold plated jewelry in new piercings. In a healing piercing the gold plating will wear off the jewelry before the piercing is healed.

Other Issues

• Bacterial Infections
  Infections are unusual in most genital piercings. Symptoms include increased pain, increased redness and an increase in the amount and thickness of the discharge. The infected discharge is usually thick and yellow, green or grey and may have an unusual odour. Consult with your physician or piercer and do not remove the jewelry until you seek advice.
• Bleeding
  It is normal in glans penis piercings to have continued bleeding in the first 24 hours, and with erections for the first week or so.
• Cleaning Agents
  Never use alcohol swabs, Betadine, hydrogen peroxide, methylated spirit, or tea tree oil to clean your piercing. These do kill bacteria but they also destroy your healing flesh. Dead flesh then becomes easily infected.
• Sexual Activity
  While your piercing is healing you should wear a condom during sexual activity. This will also decrease the risk of mechanical damage to the piercing from vigorous movement.
• Smoking
  
  1. Smoking slows healing by suppressing your immune system and blood circulation to the skin.
  2. If you cannot stop smoking then you should reconsider having any piercings.
• Swimming
  Swimming is not prohibited while your piercing is healing, but you should only swim for short periods in pools that are thoroughly chlorine- or ozone-treated. Do not let your skin become wrinkly and soft. If you swim in the ocean or waterways, do not swim after heavy rain. Storm water run-off often contains bacteria and parasites.
• Urine
  Your own urine is not a risk to your piercing and indeed the flow of urine past your piercing will assist in flushing away bacteria and exudate.
• Viral Infections
  Viruses such as Hepatitis A, B, and C, and HIV can penetrate a piercing that has not healed. These viruses may be present in the blood, saliva, semen, faeces, sweat and vaginal secretions of infected persons. Until your piercing has healed avoid any other person's bodily fluids contacting your piercing. Practice safe sex and use a condom.
• Vitamins
  Studies have shown that vitamin C and zinc promote wound healing. Aim for about 2000-3000 mg vitamin C and 100 mg zinc daily. Note that these amounts are not available in multivitamin tablets. Ask at your pharmacist or health-food store for advice on suitable products. If you are taking any medications, ask your pharmacist to make sure there are no interactions between them and the vitamin C and zinc you intend to take.