Peyronie's Disease

Peyronie's Disease; Symptoms

• You may feel a flattened lump or hard tissue like a band under the skin of the prostate which is also known as plaque, that can accumulate within the blood vessels.

• Excessive curvature of the penis downward/upward/or bend to one side.

• Erectile dysfunction

• Shortened penis. 

• Penile pain with or without an erection.

• Other penile deformities like indentations or narrowing of the shaft of the penis.

• The symptoms worsen if not treated for 3 to 12 months after the onset of the disease. 

• With treatment, the pain can be relieved but its effects such as curvature and penile shortening often require separate treatment for correction.

Peyronie's Disease; Causes

The exact cause of Peyronie's disease is unknown. Several factors are said to be at play like:

• It results from a recurrent injury to the penis (either during sex, athletic activity, or by accident).

The body attempts to heal the injury that results in disorganized scar tissue formation and that can be felt by the patient or is seen as the curved pen.

• On either side of the penis, there is a tube (corpus cavernosum) consisting of several small blood vessels, which is encased within a sheath of elastic tissue called the tunica albuginea (that expands during erection.

• In Peyronie's disease, when the patient's penis becomes erect, the scar tissue doesn't allow this expansion and appears deformed and causes pain.

In some cases, Peyronie's disease may not be associated with any injury. Further research is needed for explaining the cause of this disease.

Peyronie's Disease; Risk factors

Minor injury to the penis accompanied by poor wound healing and scar tissue build-up may contribute towards Peyronie's disease. 

Several other factors increase the risk of developing this condition such as include:

• Family history: If someone in your family has this condition you may be at risk.

• Medical history: Those who have a history of connective tissue disorders may be at risk for Peyronie's disease.

• Age: this condition may occur at all ages but more likely in men between 50s and 60s. A small amount of curvature in younger men is normal.

• Certain health conditions, smoking, and previous prostate surgery might increase the risk of Peyronie's disease.

Peyronie's Disease; Complications

• Difficulty in getting an erection (erectile dysfunction)

• Inability to have sex

• Pain in the penis

• Stress-related to sexual abilities 

• Difficulty reproducing as sexual intercourse becomes difficult 

• Shortened penis length