How doctors fix erectile dysfunction

The announcement of the successful surgery of a man who suffered erectile dysfunction for several years has caught the attention of men and women alike.

Some, looking for ways to get the surgery, others recommending their partners and friends while others were just curious about how the surgery was done.

Dr. Ahmed Yousef, a Consultant Urologist and the lead surgeon for the procedure says it involves implanting a prosthesis device in the penile shaft.

“It is a special type of material; alloy meaning materials mixed together which would give extra rigidity giving a satisfaction of almost 95 per cent,” says Dr. Ahmed

Dr. Yousef adds that erectile dysfunction is a common disorder in male adults. 10 per cent in men below the ages of 40 and 76 per cent among men who are between 50-70 years old.

There are different degrees of erectile dysfunction some require injections while others surgery.

“If a patient has severe erectile dysfunction we counsel him and recommend this surgery of putting an implant inside his penis and he will regain his erection with a high percentage of satisfaction,” said Dr. Yousef.

The surgery also helps with maintain an erection even after ejaculation, however, the doctor advises men not to abuse it.

“Since they will get a long erection, we advise our patients after the penile prosthesis surgery to have a normal sexual life and not to abuse it. The abuse can also cause perforations and infections,” he added

There are two types of penile prosthesis; malleable also known as non-inflatable penile prosthesis and inflatable penile prosthesis. With the malleable prosthesis, the patient directs the penis by hand and simply bend it up for an erection and down when done.

Dr. Yousef says that the inflatable is more natural because there’s a reservoir that is pushing fluid to the penis to make the erection and after the intercourse, all the fluid comes back to the reservoir.

According to the US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health, the inflatable consists of a pair of cylinders implanted in the corpora cavernosa (the spongy tissue in the penis or vagina) and is connected to a pump. When the pump is squeezed, and released several times (recycling), the cylinders are filled with sterile normal saline, imitating the spongy tissue blood fills during a physiologic erection.

Dr. Yousef says that the surgery takes an hour but the healing process takes one week although the patient should wait for four to six weeks before engaging in sexual intercourse.

The surgery does not affect other bodily activities like urinating. However, there are patients with urinary problems who require a different surgery known as penile prosthetic enlargement. This process is mostly done on elderly men.

Dr. Yousef says the causes of erectile dysfunction are stress, obesity, diabetes, hypertension and cardiac problems. The other problem is also penile leakage, which affects 15 per cent of patients.

“This is a type of vascular disease that affects the penis, so if he has a venous leakage this means that the mechanics and the circulation of the blood through the penis to have an erection is defective,” he adds

Another surgery is penile enlargement for men who are not satisfied with the volume and length of their penis. The doctor explains "there is a normal size that is suitable for intercourse and pregnancy but if it is below that then the procedure is recommended."

The procedure entails removing part of the skin and muscle and fixing it in the penis.

“If there is an issue in size, we plan to do an enlargement of the penis. For example a patient with a micropenis or some with previous diseases on the penis,"

The procedure is however not common because most men are comfortable with their volume and size.