Comprehensive safety assessment of diode laser circumcision in children: a retrospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND

Pediatric circumcision is a common procedure, with reported acute complication rates of 0.5-10%. This study evaluated the safety of diode laser circumcision in pediatric patients treated at a private hospital in Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico (2022-2023).

METHODS

Retrospective cohort of 51 patients ≤ 17 years who underwent diode laser circumcision diagnosed with phimosis (n = 29), balanitis (n = 13), balanitis xerotica obliterans (n = 5), and paraphimosis (n = 4). General anesthesia was used in patients under 10 years, and local block with sedation in older patients. Acute complications, operative time, and reinterventions were recorded. Operative time was compared by diagnosis using the Kruskal-Wallis test, and age was correlated with procedure duration using Spearman's correlation. Follow-up was performed at postoperative days 7 and 30.

RESULTS

No significant bleeding, wound dehiscence, or reinterventions were observed. Median operative time was 15 minutes across all groups, with similar means among diagnoses. No correlation was found between age and procedure duration (r: -0.08; p = 0.593) and no significant differences were observed among diagnoses (p = 0.183).

CONCLUSIONS

Diode laser pediatric circumcision showed a favorable safety profile and homogeneous operative times. The limited sample size restricts generalizability, requiring prospective multicenter studies to confirm these findings.