Penectomy
Penectomy , also called penile amputation , is the complete removal of the penis . The glansectomy , in which only the glans ( glans penis ) is removed, can be viewed as a sub-form .
Medical indication
For medical reasons, a full or only partial (partial) penectomy is now usually performed when a malignant tumor of the penis is present. Other reasons include a failed circumcision , a severe infection ( Fournier's gangrene ), or other severe injuries.
A penectomy can not be compared optically and functionally with a sex reassignment operation (man-to-woman) for transsexuals , since in a sex reassignment operation the penis is by no means completely removed, but surgically reshaped together with the scrotum into a neovagina , which is optically and functionally is modeled after a vagina .
Depending on the extent of the disease or injury, either part of the penis (partial penectomy) or the entire penis (total penectomy) is amputated. In a complete (total) penectomy, the urethra can be relocated between the scrotum and anus if the remaining length of the penis stump no longer allows targeted urination while standing (perineal urethrostomy ).
In mythology
Penectomy can already be found in ancient Egyptian myths : According to the Osiris myth , Osiris is killed by his brother Seth , cut into pieces, and his penis is thrown into the Nile . The wife of Osiris, Isis , succeeds with the help of Thoth to resuscitate Osiris, but she has to attach an artificial limb. In this way she succeeds in becoming pregnant with Horus .
In the history
In the past, penectomy was performed on certain groups of eunuchs in many cultures , such as African eunuchs in the East African slave trade . Furthermore, at least some of the Indian Hijras undergo not only a castration , but also a penectomy.
The Skopzen religious community, which was widespread in Russia in the 19th century, practiced penectomy for male members as a sign of acceptance into the community.
Penectomy as a body modification
Within the body modification scene , (consensual) penectomies with the same effect are occasionally carried out. However, due to the severity of the procedure and the far-reaching consequences, this occurs very rarely. A glansectomy (see above) is performed a little more often, but this is also an exception.
Penectomy for paraphilia
In contrast to a medical intervention as therapy, there are paraphilic tendencies , such as the case of the so-called "cannibal von Rotenburg" Armin Meiwes , which, from a medical point of view, does not represent a penectomy in the true sense.
See also
Web links
- Penectomy (Engl.)
Individual evidence
- ↑ U. Bürgel, Emil A. Tanagho, H. Rübben, P. Bürgel, Jack W. McAninch: Smiths Urologie . Springer-Verlag, Berlin 2013, ISBN 978-3-642-76108-9 , pp. 488 .
- ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: "The Humsafar Trust" (HST) ) (English) - an Indian foundation , with a focus on numerous medical and legal aid projects in the LGBT spectrum.
