If one was to mention the word ‘sounding’ in medical terms you might envisage a stainless steel probe used to progressively widen a urethral stricture. The insertion of ‘sounds’ or other objects into the urethra for sexual gratification is not new but has been increasingly seen in the literature in the past 10 years. Indeed, a 2010 survey by Rinard et al1 of 354 men with genital piercings revealed that just under 18% of the respondents reported using 32 different objects for sounding. Contemporary studies have reported the presence of a variety of objects retained in the urethra, including pencils, electrical wire, an AAA battery and even an Allen key. There are risks associated with the insertion of any object into the urethra, so it comes as no surprise that the use of such potentially dangerous, non-sterile objects during masturbation increases the risk of infection and trauma. However,...]]>