Penile implant patients must be aware of crucial issues that influence the quality of erection, cosmetic penis appearance, feel of the cylinders, and penile length following penile implant surgery. For starters, a penile implant comes with its limitations but also has a high satisfaction rate (1). Next, the penile flesh is not under tension when there is a deflation in the cylinders.
The flesh of the penis retracts, resulting in the bending and folding of the deflated cylinders in the shaft like an accordion. There is no penile implant enlargement procedure that adds to the length of an erect penis (2). In the best of cases, the erect penis remains the same length before and after the implant procedure. Lastly, postoperative care and tunica albuginea’s health status impacts the size of an implanted penis.
Pre-Op Preparation
Before the operation, the extended penile length measurement must be done on whether the penile injection test is conducted. This way, the patient is given a realistic postoperative expectation about the size.
Numerous surgical tips will enable the surgeon to optimize the postoperative length. Some of these factors include the type of anesthesia, position of the patient on the operating table, prior knowledge of the stretched penile length, adoption of the No-Touch technique, and the overall surgical approach.
Type of Anesthesia
When you compare spinal anesthesia to general anesthesia, the previous works by numbing your body from your waist down. The blood will form a pool in a relaxed penis. The penis stretches itself and allows the surgeon to put the longest possible cylinder that fits perfectly.
The surgeon can at once view the size and measurement of the stretched penis before beginning the operation. General anesthesia lacks a relaxing effect on the penile tissues (3). As such, the surgeon is required to stretch the penis manually and approximate the penile length.
The No-Touch Technique
Knowing the pre-implantation length helps optimize the postoperative penile length. Following the insertion of cylinders in the penis, they become inflated before the closure of the corporotomies, and measurements of the erect penis.
The size is then contrasted against the initial length before the implant process. The No-Touch technique is applied when there is a need for adjustment in the cylinder length (4). The length can also be adjusted without skin bacteria contaminating the cylinders.
Observing Postoperative Care
In the first three months post-surgery, the cylinders need to be kept wholly deflated to keep the reservoir inflated in full. It will enable the forming of the scar tissue on a complete reservoir and avert auto-inflation. It implies that the penis heals over the deflated cylinders. The scar tissue also forms over the curvatures and folds of the cylinder.
The surgical technique is likely to be more precise when handled by a surgeon with significant experience (5). Dissections and incisions have to be at a minimum, and careful surgical hemostasis acquired to reduce the risk of swelling and hematoma after the operation. The patient needs 48 hours of post-op bed rest with ice, followed by hot baths that help lower swelling and speed up healing.
Final Thoughts on Penile Implant Enlargement
Maximizing quality and length of the erection along with cosmetic appearance is dependent on several factors. Among the most crucial factors is the experience of the surgeon and the practice implant volume.
Links to Sources Used:
- Clinical Outcome: Patient and Partner Satisfaction after Penile Implant Surgery https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6872984/
- Strategies for maintaining penile size following penile implant https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4708606/
- Penile prosthesis surgery under local penile block anesthesia via the infra pubic space https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11114981/
- Penile Implant: Review of a “No-Touch” Technique https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27871962/
- The future of penile prostheses for the treatment of erectile dysfunction https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7108986/