Penile Injection Therapy

Penile injections started in the late 1970's and basically means injecting drugs into the penis to cause erections. It gained wide acceptance prior to the release of Viagra and it is still a common treatment for men who have nerve damage following prostate surgery or for men who are not responding to first line-therapies like oral medications, external devices and therapy.

The erections come on within 5 to 10 minutes after injection and may last for 30 to 60 minutes. 

Men need to be properly taught how to inject themselves and therefore supervised injections in the doctor's surgery are highly recommended. It is not sufficient to just be given instructions to learn how to use the technique at home. Additionally, finding the right dose is extremely important and should also be done under medical supervision.

Side- effects of Penile Injections

The side-effects of penile injections can be:

• Pain
• Bruising
• Bleeding
• Thickening of penile tissue, which can scar and bend the penis
• Priapism, erections that last too long

The greatest risk with penile injections relates to dosage, in that, too big if a dose can cause erections that last too long. This is called Priapism. Erections lasting more than 6 hours can damage the penis. Finding the right dose is important and should therefore always be done under medical supervision.

Additionally, men who have pre-existing scar tissue in their penis, which is called Peyronie's disease, should also use penile injections with care.

Please consult your doctor or GP to discuss the risks of penile injection therapies, to receive further information, and to see whether this is the right treatment for you.

Penile Prosthesis/Penile Implant Surgery

Penile implant surgery is a permanent solution for those men who fail to respond to all non-surgical therapies and who have a clear physical cause.

A penile prosthesis is an inflatable device that is surgically implanted into the penis. It can create erections via squeezing the pump of the device, which is normally located in a testicle.

Penile implants are irreversible and can be quite costly.

Risks of Penile Prosthesis/Penile Implant Surgery

Risks associated with the surgical procedure are:

• Infections
• Problems in relation to the size of the prothesis
• Difficulties regarding the placement of the prothesis
• Mechanical breakdown of the device (which is uncommon)

It is important to discuss the risks with your doctor as penile implant surgery is a much greater undertaking than other treatments for erectile dysfunction.

Vascular Reconstructive Surgery

Vascular reconstructive surgery is performed to improve the blood supply of the penis and it involves by-passing blocked arteries by transferring an artery from an abdominal muscle to a penile artery.

Only a very small number of men would need it and it is not commonly performed, because it is a difficult procedure, costly and not always effective.

It may be suggested to men who have experienced some trauma around the scrotum and anus regions. Additionally, vascular surgery may be an appropriate treatment for men who are born with veins that have difficulty draining blood out of the penis, which is a very uncommon condition.

Please talk to your doctor if you would like more information or to see if vascular reconstructive surgery is right for you.