Characterizing Injuries from Genital Foreign Objects: Analysis from the National Electronic Injury Surveillance...

Genital foreign body injuries are becoming more common with the growing popularity of genital piercings and devices such as penile rings. We evaluated a nationwide sample of emergency department data to determine trends in demographics, injury locations, disposition and source of injury over time with regard to genital foreign bodies.

Using NEISS (National Electronic Injury Surveillance System), a representative sample of data collected from hospital emergency department visits associated with consumer product related injuries occurring in the United States, we retrospectively identified cases of genital foreign body injuries in males and females. Means were compared with the independent t-test and proportions with chi-square analysis.

We identified 184 genital foreign body injuries in NEISS from 2008 to 2017 consisting of 87 piercing injuries (47.3%) and 97 genital ring injuries (52.7%). The most common body part injured was the penile foreskin (100 cases, 54.3%). Mean age was 35.9 years, and males were more commonly injured than females (127, 69.0% vs 57, 31.0%). Genital foreign body injuries increased over time from 2008 (10, 5.4%) to 2017 (25, 13.6%), and most patients (166, 90.2%) were treated and released from the emergency department.

Although genital foreign body injuries caused by piercings and sex toys are becoming more common, most can be safely managed at the emergency department without hospitalization. Affected patients tend to be younger and male with most injuries occurring on the penile foreskin. More large-scale studies are needed to determine trends according to economic status, education level and location within the United States.