Hi and welcome to MansMatters, the erectile dysfunction and Peyronie’s disease shockwave clinic.
Today, I want to provide a broad overview of what Peyronie’s disease is, how it develops, and the effects it has on the 10% of men who suffer from it.
The first sign of Peyronie’s disease is when, during an erection, you notice your penis bending in a different direction and you begin to experience pain. A mild bend might not seem concerning at first, especially when it is upwards, but this is just the beginning of a much longer and often tumultuous journey.
This bend occurs because plaque or scar tissue forms in the outer region of your penis, known as the tunica albuginea. The effect is that the side of the penis with the plaque or scar tissue becomes less flexible and cannot expand when you have an erection. As a result, one side of your penis expands, while the Peyronie’s-affected side remains restricted, causing the penis to bend toward the area with the plaque or scar tissue. The bend can be upwards, downwards, to the side, or occasionally around the circumference of the penis.
You may also notice a physical lump or hardening of the skin in the affected area, though it’s not always the case that you can feel this. The condition can be confirmed by an experienced practitioner or through a diagnostic ultrasound.
Many men are too embarrassed to discuss this condition with their doctors and allow the problem to progress without treatment. Over time, this leads to increased penis curvature, as the plaque inside the penis grows and hardens. This results in a loss of blood flow through the blood vessels, less sensitivity, a decrease in penis length, softening of the penis head, and partial erectile dysfunction. Some, but not all, patients will experience varying degrees of pain in the penis. Sexual intercourse becomes much more difficult and, at times, impossible due to both the bend and softening of the penis.
While Peyronie’s disease can affect men of all ages, certain patients are more prone to a buildup of plaque in the penis. This includes men with type 1 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high triglycerides (a type of fat in the blood), and those who smoke or use tobacco. Peyronie’s disease can also be caused by trauma, such as bending of the penis during sexual intercourse or being hit in the penis by a football.
Before extracorporeal focused shockwave therapy, patients faced the difficult choice of waiting for months as the bend worsened, then undergoing dramatic invasive surgery. Surgical options included penile implants, where the patient no longer has natural erections and must rely on a manual pump; penile plication, where unaffected areas of the penis are shortened to straighten the penis, leading to a loss of erect length of up to 5 centimeters; or penile grafts, which carry the risk of erectile dysfunction. Various injection therapies have also been used with differing effects.
Focused shockwave therapy, originally used to break up kidney stones, has proven to be highly effective in treating Peyronie’s disease. The therapy breaks up the plaque in the penis, which is then naturally passed out of the body. This process helps straighten the penis, reinvigorates existing blood vessels, develops new blood vessels, and stimulates nerve tissue. Shockwave therapy has a tremendous success rate, and many patients who have been unable to have satisfactory sex for years have rediscovered their sex life within just a few weeks.
To learn more about our shockwave treatment for Peyronie’s disease, visit our website at peyroniesdisease.co.uk. You can also check out our video, “Peyronie’s Disease Cure,” which provides a comprehensive overview of all treatment options and includes a detailed animation of the shockwave therapy.
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