What is Peyronie's Disease?
Erectile dysfunction is a common complication of Peyronie's disease that causes the majority of concern in most men affected by it.
The curvature of the penis hinders sexual activities and causes difficulty performing; leading to stress, discomfort, and anxiety.
The disease does not go away on its own without treatment and may even lead to worsened symptoms. Hence it is better to seek treatment on noticing its signs and symptoms.
What are the Types of Peyronie's Disease Treatment?
Surgical Treatment
Non-surgical Treatment
How is Non-surgical Treatment for Peyronie's Disease performed?
Nonsurgical management is used to treat the early stages of this disease. The treatment options available are:
Shockwave therapy can correct the defect caused by scar tissue build-up.
Penile traction therapy is performed to expand the tissues within the penis.
Penile traction therapy is a procedure in which the penile is stretched with a mechanical device that is applied by the patient, over time improving the penile deformity.
Depending on the device, traction therapy may be worn for 30 minutes to up to eight hours a day to achieve benefits.
The effectiveness also depends on the particular device used.
This only treatment has shown to improve the penile length and is advised especially in treating the early phase of the disease.
It may be combined with other options or the following surgery to treat a chronic case and improve the overall outcome of the treatments.
Medical therapy using different medicines.
Gentle penile exercises.
Lifestyle changes to prevent worsening of the condition like quitting smoking, reducing alcohol intake, and exercising regularly.
How is Surgical Treatment performed?
Surgery is recommended to treat advanced disease conditions and penile deformity.
The doctor may observe the condition through a series of regular check-ups and wait at least 1 year before turning to this option provided the symptoms are under control and manageable.
Surgery is recommended in severe cases-after you have had the disease for 9 to 12 months and the symptoms aggravate causing an increase in the curvature which stabilizes for at least three months.
Surgery is performed to:
Shorten the unaffected side
Lengthen the side where scar tissue has formed.
Penile implants through incision grafting and suturing may be done to achieve this.
The lengthening process increases the risk of future erectile dysfunction as compared to the surgery for shortening the unaffected side.
A type of such a shortening procedure is called the Nesbit application in which the doctor will remove the excess tissue on the longer side, creating a shorter and straighter line.
What are the other Treatment options?
The common surgeries to treat this disease are:
Plication of the penis on the unaffected side: In this procedure the surgeon sutures or plicates the longer /unaffected (without scar tissue) side of the penis to straighten the penis.
Incision or excision and grafting: the surgeon makes cuts to expand the scar tissue so that the sheath stretches out to straighten the penis.
Some of the scar tissue is also removed. A piece of tissue graft is often sutured on the holes in the tunica albuginea.
This procedure is generally used in treating deformities like indentations. This procedure has more risk of aggravating erectile function compared to plication procedures.
Penile implants to reconstruct the affected part, are placed into the spongy tissue that fills with blood during an erection.
They are suggested only when you have Peyronie's disease in combination with erectile dysfunction.
Additional procedures may be required to treat the curvature that persists.
The type of surgical option recommended may depend on your condition. Along with other factors. If you're uncircumcised, your doctor may also advise circumcision during surgery.
The hospital stays and recovery depend on the type of surgery performed.
You may need to avoid strenuous activities for a few days after surgery and wait four to eight weeks before having sexual intercourse.
Other less common treatment options include:
Iontophoresis which utilizes electric current to administer a drug combination via the skin, shock wave therapy, stem cells, radiation therapy, etc are available as well but further research is needed to determine their effectiveness.
What are the Complications of Peyronie's Disease Treatment?
In addition to the stress, this condition may cause problems with your partner to arise as well with regard to performing sexual activities and inability to father a child.
Seek support from a doctor and a psychological counselor, to help you manage these issues.
Talk to your partner about these difficulties and seek emotional support mutually with the help of a therapist if required.
