MORTIFYING DEFECT CAN BE FIXED

AN ESTIMATED 100,000 men live with a condition where urine doesn’t pass out of the tip of the penis — but from an opening somewhere down the shaft.

Known as hypospadias, it’s a congenital abnormality — there from birth. The urine hole can be on the side of the penis, or at the bottom near the scrotum. The penis is likely to be bent, and the foreskin does not go round the whole penis. Untreated, it can make normal urination and sex almost impossible.

Today, reconstructive surgery is often performed on boys while they are babies — but older men may have suffered in silence. Some men with hypospadias say they have lived almost their entire lives feeling they are the only one with this mortifying defect.

‘Men can have issues with penile curvature, erectile dysfunction and infertility,’ says Tet Yap, a reconstructive genital surgeon at London Urology Associates. ‘They will also suffer from quality of life issues.’

It can be fixed with a series of operations known as urethroplasty. ‘Hypospadias is one of the most common genital anomalies in newborns, with one case in every 300,’ says Mr Yap. ‘The optimal age for correction is between six and 24 months.’

The surgery can be done on adults but it is vital this is done by a specialist. If you have concerns, ask how many hypospadias operations a surgeon has done.