Urology Research & Practice
GENERAL UROLOGY - Review

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Penis Length and Circumference According to WHO Regions: Who has the Biggest One?

1.

Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

2.

Department of Urology, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria

3.

Department of Urology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan

4.

Department of Urology Okayama University Graduate School of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Okayama, Japan

5.

Department of Urology, King Fahad Specialist Hospital-Dammam, Saudi Arabia

6.

Institute for Urology and Reproductive Health, Sechenov University, Moscow, Russia

7.

Department of Urology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany

8.

Men’s Health and Reproductive Health Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

9.

Department of Urology, Medical University of Silesia, Zabrze, Poland

10.

Research Center for Evidence-Based Medicine, Iranian EBM Center: A JBI Centre of Excellence, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences Faculty of Medicine, Tabriz, Iran

11.

Medical Philosophy and History Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran

12.

Department of Urology, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, New York, USA

13.

Department of Urology, University of Texas Southwestern, Dallas, Texas, USA

14.

Department of Urology, Second Faculty of Medicine, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic

15.

Karl Landsteiner Institute of Urology and Andrology, Vienna, Austria

16.

European Association of Urology Research Foundation, Arnhem, Netherlands

Urol Res Pract 2024; 50: 291-301
DOI: 10.5152/tud.2025.24038
Read: 1309 Downloads: 166 Published: 07 March 2025

Objective: This study aimed to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of stretched, erect, and flaccid penis length as well as circumference according to geographic WHO regions.

Methods: PubMed, Embase, Scopus, and Cochrane Library were searched for articles published until February 2024. Studies in which a healthcare professional evaluated the penis size were considered eligible. After assessing the risk of bias, a systematic review and meta-analyses were performed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis statement, and the outcomes were grouped based on the WHO regions.

Results: A total of 33 studies comprising 36 883 patients were included. The risk of bias in the included studies was moderate/low. A comprehensive systematic review was done and meta-analyses performed for flaccid length [n = 28 201, mean (SE) 9.22 (0.24) cm], stretched length [n = 20 814, mean (SE) 12.84 (0.32) cm], erect length [n = 5669, mean (SE) 13.84 (0.94) cm], flaccid circumference [n = 30 117, mean (SE) 9.10 (0.12) cm], and erect circumference [n = 5168, mean (SE) 11.91 (0.18) cm]. The mean length of the stretched penis was largest in Americans [14.47 (0.90) cm]. The mean length of the flaccid penis was the largest in the Americas [10.98 (0.064) cm]. The mean flaccid penile circumference was largest in Americans [n = 29 714, mean (SE) 10.00 (0.04) cm].

Conclusions: Penis sizes vary across WHO regions, suggesting the need to adjust standards according to geography to better understand councilmen and their partners. These data provide a framework for discussing body image expectations and therapeutic strategies in this sensitive and emotional subject matter.

Cite this article as: Mostafaei H, Mori K, Katayama S, et!al. A systematic review and meta-analysis of penis length and circumference according to WHO regions: who has the biggest one?. Urol Res Pract.2024;50(5):291-301.

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