Micropenis and Macropenis: What It All Means & When It Becomes an Issue

If you are a man reading this article, I am certain that on more than a couple of occasions since hitting puberty you have thought about the size of your penis. If you are a woman now you know.

Whether the penis is small, normal, or even large all men have a certain level of insecurity that goes with how gifted they are between their legs. These insecurities affect a lot of aspects of a man’s life including confidence, enjoyable sex life, and relationships.

For today’s reading, the focus is to explore the furthest reaches of the spectrum when it comes to the male hood endowment. The average penile length is 9.16 cm (3.6 inches) flaccid and 13.12 cm (5.1 inches) erect [1] while penile width is 9.40 cm (3.7 inches) flaccid and 11.66 cm (4.5 inches) erect [2].

However, this article would like to discuss the two conditions that affect some men which are Micropenis and Macropenis.

Understanding Micropenis

Having a micropenis is a very rare condition that occurs in men that is characterized by a man having penis length and circumference that is significantly smaller than the general average. Other names for the condition include microphallus, Small Penis Syndrome (SPL), or a variation of Penial Dysmorphic Disorder (PDD). It should be noted that despite the smaller size the penis of a person with Micropenis remains the same in respect to structure, appearance, and function to a ”normal penis”.

Diagnosis for Micropenis is usually done for a lot of males during their infancy, mostly soon after birth. Statistics indicate that the condition is very rare with it occurring to only 0.6% of men worldwide [3]. Even though a greater majority of diagnosis takes place in infants it should be noted that it can also take place in older adults who may suspect that they have a penis that is extremely smaller than usual.

The diagnosis for the condition may be done using 3 main processes (with usually the first and the second done simultaneously);

1. Measuring of the Stretched Penial Length (SPL)

This process is usually done by measuring the SPL which is similar to the length of an erect penis in males. For newborns with Micropenis, the SPL is anything that is less than 0.74 inches [4] and in adults, it’s less than 3 ²/₃ inches.

2. Hormone analysis

This process is usually done by Endocrinologists who take an analysis of the hormone levels of the said patient. This is to check the levels of androgens and in particular testosterone in the patient’s body which are responsible for penile growth.

3. Imaging

Imaging may also be done on the pelvic region of the patient using either an ultrasound scan or an MRI to determine if one has Micropenis.

In most instances, Micropenis in males usually occurs when the body of a fetus, infant, toddler, or adolescent does not normally respond to androgen production resulting in significantly low testosterone levels. This may be as a result of hormonal imbalances caused during pregnancy or even other medical disorders affecting the pituitary glands or the hypothalamus that distort hormone production [5].

Another study in France also has brought to light that parents with high exposure to pesticides may also induce lower production of androgens to fetuses and infants [6].

Having a micropenis is usually a challenging condition for most men. The most evident way that the condition affects men is usually seen through media that usually ridicule men for having a smaller penis.

Getting sexual partners, as well as general confidence during sex, is also a significant issue as most men are insecure about their ability to be able to please their partners. This causes a significant psychological burden on the men which may result in depression.

Another documented side effect that is associated with having a micropenis is reduced fertility in men with a micropenis. This is mainly due to reduced levels of testosterone, resulting in having a lower than average sperm count.

In respect to treatments, it should be noted that hormonal therapy in which infants are administered testosterone either through injections or a gel is the most common treatment. This treatment has a very good success rate but is most effective in infants.

Another treatment is a surgical procedure which is known as a phalloplasty that enlarges the penis. It should be noted that phalloplasty is usually done for older patients as it is an extremely complicated surgery for infants.

Understanding Macropenis

Macropenis, on the other hand, is also another rare condition that occurs in men that usually results in a man having penial length and circumference that is significantly larger than the average penis size. Other names for Macropenis also include Macrophallus and Megalopenis. It should be noted that just as with the micropenis, the macropenis also maintains the same structure, appearance, and function as a ”normal penis”.

The diagnosis of the Macropenis is carried out in a roundabout the same way as that of the micropenis i.e. measuring the SPL, hormone analysis as well as pelvic imaging using ultra-sound scans or MRIs. Existing literature mainly provides for diagnosis usually taking place for infants at childbirth but porn and existing pop culture give evidence of men’s very large penis.

For an adult to be considered to have Macropenis studies have noted that the SPL of a man’s penis should be over 7.5 inches and a circumference of 5.8 inches [7]. John Falcon is one popular example of an individual with a large dick which is estimated to have an SPL of 13.5 inches [8].

The main cause for one to have such a large penis is largely associated with an individual having a spiked production of testosterone. The main documented causes of these spikes are associated with interstitial cell tumors of the testicles, hyperplasia, or tumors to the adrenal cortex [9]. Other reasons for abnormal penial growth are associated with a varied range of diseases such as sickle cell anemia which may cause blood cells to block the vessels of the penis resulting in enlargement.

Even though it may seem like every guy wishes to have the world’s largest penis it is not always the case. This is evidenced by some men who choose to have the size of their penis reduced in size for both health and cosmetic reasons.

The major issue that most big dick men have is the fear of hurting their partners during sex. Men with macropenis also struggle to develop relationships as some women use them as a means of experimenting with no intentions of developing an actual relationship.

The most common treatment is usually done by lowering the excess production of testosterone either by suppressing the hormones or removing the tumors causing Macropenis. A reduction phalloplasty is also another option that can be taken as evidenced by a Canadian teenager who had a penis with a circumference of 10 inches caused by sickle cell anemia who had to undergo the procedure to the pain that enlarged penis began to cause him [10].

Conclusion

It should be noted that there still exists very limited literature on both Micropenis as well as Macropenis. As such any individuals need to seek medical assistance from a urologist who will help them understand the condition better in a way that is specific to their particular need.

As already indicated above for both conditions in most instances the structure, function, as well as appearance, remains the same. As such all men need to find a way to embrace the size of their penes as a means of allowing them to live fulfilled lives.

References

1. Wise, J. (2015). The average length of a flaccid and erect penis is published to help counselors. BMJ, 350(mar02 15), doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.h1193
2. Veale, D., Miles, S., Bramley, S., Muir, G., & Hodsoll, J. (2015). Am I normal? A systematic review and construction of nomograms for flaccid and erect penis length and circumference in up to 15,521 men. BJU international, 115(6), 978–986. https://doi.org/10.1111/bju.13010
3. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17955-micropenis
4. https://abdominalkey.com/penis/
5. Nerli, R. B., Guntaka, A. K., Patne, P. B., & Hiremath, M. B. (2013). Penile growth in response to hormone treatment in children with micropenis. Indian journal of urology: IJU: journal of the Urological Society of India, 29(4), 288–291. https://doi.org/10.4103/0970-1591.120107
6. Gaspari, L., P/ARIS, F., Jandel, C., Kalfa, N., Orsini, M., Daurès, J. P., & Sultan, C. (2011). Prenatal environmental risk factors for genital malformations in a population of 1442 French male newborns: a nested case-control study. Human reproduction (Oxford, England), 26(11), 3155–3162. https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/der283
7. https://bigdickguide.com/macropenis-megalopenis-macrophallus/
8. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah_Falcon
9. Fahmy M. (2017) Megalopenis. In: Congenital Anomalies of the Penis. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43310-3_10
10. https://melmagazine.com/en-us/story/megalopenis-explainer