Psychological factors in hypospadias repair.

Children undergoing hypospadias repair and their parents have anxieties related not only to the operation but to future expectations. These anxieties are expressed by children through their drawings and by parents through interviews. They are enhanced by the fact that the hypospadias defect is only noticeable to the parents and child and is kept as secret information. Other defects, such as cleft palate, are obvious and cannot be hidden. The anxieties associated with hypospadias appear to be different whem compared to those associated with more obvious deformities.