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Only then the foreskin can be retracted. The age at which this occurs is subject to the child's individual development. If the foreskin is retracted prematurely, before it has fully separated, that can result in painful tears and infections.
The widening of the foreskin also depends on age. A child's foreskin may be too tight to be retracted all the way past the glans, even though it has already completely separated from the glans. This early foreskin tightness ([[phimosis]]) is a normal stage of development and vanishes with increasing age in most boys.
A study by the Danish paediatrician and school doctor, Jakob Øster, of 9,545 examinations of pupils, published in 1968, led to the following results<ref>Øster J. Further fate of the foreskin: incidence of preputial adhesions, [[phimosis]], and smegma among Danish Schoolboys. Arch Dis Child 1968;43:200-3.</ref>:
{|border='1' style='text-align:right' cellpadding='2'
!width='15%'|Age
!width='15%'|[[Phimosis]]
!width='15%'|Tightness
!width='15%'|Incomplete separation
''Classification according to Øster:''
''Phimosis[[phimosis]]: Foreskin tightness prohibiting retraction''
''Tightness: Foreskin tightness hampering retraction''</blockquote>