erections in infants

I have two boys, one six and one 14 months, the six year old has had many erections in the past and at first we were conserned until we looked up that it is normal for infants to get erections. My question is our 14 month old has not had one yet and we are a little concerned since our other had so many we had to look up if it was normal. Is he ok or do we might need to get him checked out?

[Janice M Epp, PhD]

Hello.

Babies erect and lubricate from the time of their birth. As you've found out, this is physiologically normative; it means their bodies are working just fine.

I'm wondering how you know for sure that your 14-month-old isn't EVER having erections. Are you watching him 24 hours a day? I think not. It's possible that he's having erections at other times when you're not around. Perhaps he's noticed you taking such an interest and has become shy around you. Believe it or not, babies respond very acutely to perceived discomfort, etc. in their caretakers.

If you don't notice any obvious damage to his penis, there's probably nothing to worry about. However, I'm going to suggest you monitor the situation for a few more months--without being overbearing and scaring your child--and if you're absolutely sure he's never having erections, then see if your pediatrician can refer you to a pediatric urologist for an exam.

I do want to congratulate you on being concerned about your son's sexual health at this early age. If more parents were comfortable with this issue, we'd see a lot less sexual concerns later on in adulthood. Dr. J