What's a frozen penis? A Swedish skier complained of this condition

Some may chuckle, but for a Swedish cross-country skier it is no laughing matter. Calle Halfvarsson, who participated in a race in icy temperatures over the weekend, said his penis was frozen. “I have frozen my penis. For real,” Halfvarsson was quoted as saying by CNN. “Damn, I had to lie in there [the athletes’ tent] for 10 minutes to warm it up. It hurts so damn much. It’s terrible.” “It’s lucky that I’m about to have my second child because it’s going to be difficult in the future if I’m going to continue like this,” Halfvarsson added. But is this condition dangerous? What do experts say? Let’s take a closer look: Is it dangerous? First, let’s briefly examine frostbite. As per Healthing.CA, frostbite occurs when the skin and the tissue underneath it freeze. The body then responds via vasoconstriction, according to The Conversation. This is when blood vessels in the area narrow to prevent blood from flowing to that area, so that it doesn’t bring down the temperature of the viral organs, destroy the skin tissue, or start ice crystals from forming in the blood.

So why does the penis get frostbite?

Dr Seth Cohen, a urologist, told Vice News, “Distal extremities – end organs that can become blocked by one artery – go first, like fingers and toes, and of course the penis is a distal extremity.” “If  that specific flow of blood gets blocked, or frozen, or constricted for any reason, that organ starts to lose oxygenated blood,” he said. “That’s what frostbite is.” But why does it hurt? “Cold has an analgesic effect, something we use medically to numb skin before injections,” a burns registrar told IFLScience. “This could explain why he would have increased pain as the affected area returned to warmer temperatures.” Experts say liken penis frostbite to soft tissue damage as a result of freezing temperatures. They warn it can have permanent damage. “If ice burns are deep dermal or full thickness they will take longer to heal and have a greater likelihood of scarring,” the burns registrar explained. “Genital burns also have a higher chance of getting infected which delays healing and increases chance of scar formation.” As per Allohealth.care, the most common signs of a frozen penis are:

• Numbness
• Loss of colour
• Lack of sensation

Blisters, oozing skin, or a foul odour can also be some symptoms of a frozen penis. Experts say donning thermal underwear and insulated pants can help prevent such a diagnosis. Taking warm up breaks and avoiding prolonged exposure to freezing temperatures is another preventative remedy. What does it feel like? Halfvarsson had this to say as per CNN, “Those who know, they know. But here’s a tip from me. Stay away from it, because it is the worst thing you can experience.” At least Halfvarsson can take heart in the fact that he hasn’t been the only one to suffer thus. Prince Harry in his memoir Spare also admitted that he suffered from a frostbitten penis during the wedding of his brother Prince William and Princess Kate. Harry said he got the frostbitten penis during a walk to the North Pole in 2011. “…when you’re walking, you’re hot and you’re trying not to sweat, because the sweat freezes, and once it’s numb, you don’t know the pain. It’s just numb,” Harry said as per Harper’s Bazaar. Harry said he didn’t even realise what was wrong until he’d returned home.

There was “nothing visible, nothing obvious. It was a slow deteriorating situation,” he added.

“Pa was very interested, and sympathetic about the discomfort of my frost nipped ears and cheeks,” Harry wrote in his memoir according to Page Six. “While the ears and cheeks were already healing, the todger wasn’t. It was becoming more of an issue by the day.” As per Healthing.CA, Finnish skiier Remi Lindholm also said he had an “unbearable” pain after a cross country skiing event. “You can guess which body part was a little bit frozen when I finished,” Lindholm said after the race. “It was one of the worst competitions I’ve been in. It was just about battling through.” Remi said it began as numbness, but once he got warmer the pain began. “When the body parts started to warm up after the finish, the pain was unbearable.” Remi told CNN he previously had a similar experience during a cross-country ski race in Ruka. Ouch. With inputs from agencies