Peyronie’s Disease Information

Peyronie’s Disease Diagnosis

Originally documented in 1793 by François de la Peyronie who was physician to King Louis XIV of France, Peyronie’s disease is a severe form of penis curvature. The symptoms normally show at least a 30 degree angle when the penis is erect. It is wise to note that some amount of penile curvature in healthy males is considered normal. However, if the penis bends more than 30 degrees in any direction and the curve is caused by internal plaque, quite often the male patient will be diagnosed with Peyronie’s disease.

Penile curvature angle and Peyronie’s disease diagnosis.

Cause of Peyronie’s Disease

The cause of Peyronie’s disease is believed to be a buildup of collagen and scar tissue fibrosis in the penile shaft. Sometimes referred to by Urologists as “plaque”, it essentially attaches to otherwise normal parts of the penis and causes a tightening of the effected area. This this results in a small pull or stiffening between two points and this is what gives the penis a curved appearance.

The exact cause of the scar tissue and plaque is not widely known, however it is known that Peyronie’s disease can be related with age, through injury and some men can be born with it. In some men the penis curvature can can cause issues with their sex life and relationships, and some can experience severe pain from the condition. Some men can even find it hard to urinate depending in the severity of the penis curvature.

Effects of Peyronie’s Disease

In a large scale survey reported by the Daily Mail, penile shortening is only one negative effect of having severe penis curvature. Some other negative impacts of Peyronie’s disease can include:

1 in 10 relationships have broken down completely due to Peyronie’s
25% of men with Peyronie’s are no longer sexually active
20% of men with Peyronie’s felt they would be laughed at
40% of men suffering with Peyronie’s were not offered any treatment
1 in 10 men with Peyronie’s did not tell anyone, not even their Doctor
45% of men with Peyronie’s said their Doctor was not helpful
The condition can make erections painful and sex impossible
60%of men with Peyronie’s have suffered depression as a result

Source: Dailymail.co.uk

If any of the above issues sound familiar, rest assured you are not alone. Their are non surgical and non invasive options to assist treating Peyronie’s disease. It is estimated that between 5 to 10% of men have or will get Peyronie’s disease in their lifetime.

Peyronie’s Disease Treatments

Invasive Treatment Options

Before penile traction therapy (PTT) became well known in the medical community, corrective penis surgery was the only proven and accepted method to treat Peyronie’s disease. There are three main surgical treatments for Peyronies disease; Plication, Grafting and Penile Implants. Each procedure comes with it’s own risks, and possible complications or side effects such as penile shortening, impotence and nerve damage.

Plication Surgical Treatment

Plication for Peyronies disease treatment image

Plication is a Peyronie’s surgery procedure that involves using stitches on the opposite side of where the penis curvature is noticed. The stitches are used to pull the penis in opposition to the plaque in the hope of evening out the effects the plaque is causing and to ultimately to heal with a straighter penis. Plication does not treat indentations or other deformities. It is believed there is a low risk of of impotence (inability to gain an erection) or nerve damage as a result of this surgical Peyronie’s disease treatment. Penile shortening after the 4 to 6 week recovery period has commonly been associated with this surgical procedure.

Grafting Surgical Treatment

Grafting for Peyronies disease treatment

Grafting is a procedure to treat Peyronie’s disease by making a surgical incision on the affected side of the penis. Then a piece of living tissue (graft), such as a vein or pig intestine is placed inside the penis “fill out” the penile shaft in order for it to match to non affected, longer side of the penis. Depending on the health of circulation within the patients penis, the grafting treatment for Peyronie’s can result in a 10% to 50% risk of impotence. The chance of nerve damage is also considered to be high using this Peyronie’s surgery technique. Penile shortening after the 6 to 8 week recovery period has commonly been associated with this surgical procedure.

Penile Prosthesis (Implant) Treatment

A prosthesis or implant can be surgically inserted into the penis as a method of Peyronie’s disease treatment. Inflatable penile implants have also been used to help men with impotence and erectile dysfunction. The intended outcome is to help both artificially gain an erection and also to straighten the penis. Having a penile prosthesis inserted for Peyronie’s disease treatment involves removing the corpora cavernosa and replacing them with inflatable saline cylinders.

Peyronie’s surgery and removal of Corpora Cavernosa

Diagram showing how a penile implant is inserted and used to treat Peyronie’s disease.

Penile implants have three main connected mechanisms that are need to function properly. These include the cylinders, a saline fluid reservoir and a pump which is inserted and housed in the scrotum. When an erection is desired the pump is used to release the fluid from the saline reservoir to the cylinders. To make the erection subside the saline fluid travels back to the holding reservoir. Penile shortening after the 5 to 7 week recovery period has commonly been associated with this surgical procedure.

Non Invasive Method to Assist Penile Curvature

While surgery for Peyronie’s disease treatment is still largely administered today, more Doctors and specialist Urologists are recommending non invasive treatments for Peyronie’s disease. We certainly welcome these recommendations and praise the medical community professionals that let their patients know about penile traction therapy. They not only help reduce the possible risks of surgery for their patients, they also prevent them from having to undergo the side effects such as penile shortening that is a commonly experienced after the healing phase of surgical Peyronie’s disease treatment.

Most unfortunate is that depending on the procedure, Peyronie’s surgery may not provide permanent penis curvature correction results.

In our view, a first try consideration for men who have been diagnosed with Peyronie’s disease should be a non invasive method such as penile traction therapy.

For video demonstrations of how penile traction may assist men with penile curvature please visit our video and information page.