Re: penis curvature

Posted By HFHS M.D.-MS on February 09, 1998 at 19:20:26:

In Reply to: penis curvature posted by james on February 06, 1998 at 13:56:28:








i am 54 years old and have had a penis curvature since birth. its a downward curve similar to a banana. i was told its chordee without hypospadias. i would like to know that treatments both sugurical and nonsurgical are available. in addition since i've been over 50 my erections don't get a hard as earlier and are more difficult to matain for any lenght of time. would treatment be covered by insurance, i'm covered with blue cross network in michigan. lastly do herbs work to matain an errection such as yohimba ginko and any others i havnt mentioned?




  


Dear James
Thanks you for your question.
A congenital curvature of the penis can be caused by several things.  If your curve was to one side, it might be due to a disproportion in the length  of the two tubes inside the penis which hold blood under pressure during an erection. These tubes are called corpora cavernosa. Ventral or downward  curvature like you are describing is seen in association with hypospadias because the scarred or underdeveloped urethral tissue  tethers the penis toward it.   In the case of congenital scrotal webbing, the  scrotum is adherent to the underside of the penis which causes curvature toward it.   Acquired curvature due to scar formation,  as you may know is called Peyronies.
Surgical correction for chordee is the only proven technique for good cosmetic results.  There is a chance the penis can be shortened because the longer side of the penis ( the top side in your case) may need to be tucked.  There is a small chance the nerves which run along the top may become damaged.  This might result in impotence( the inability to obtain and keep an erection for adequate intercourse).  Especially if you are having much difficulty with erections now.    As normal men age, the quality of their erections also decrease.  Sometimes during repair of Peyronies,  a penile prosthesis needs to be inserted  for the correction of impotence and also to help the penis heal straight.  Please see answer to Peyronies  1/13/98
Insurance usually will cover congenital anomalies even for cosmesis.
Drs Holloway and Farah are our specialist in this area of Urology and would be happy to see you if you desire to discuss your options further.  Please call the operators at 1 800 653 6568 and they will handle it from there.
Lastly, many herbs have been marketed as home remedies for many medical conditions.  Most have never been stringently scientifically tested.   This testing would be very costly for the product manufactures and the product may prove only to have a placebo effect.  The manufacturers are content to keep these products as novelty status only.  These products are usually not harmful and this novelty status affords the manufacturers some product liability also.
As for Yohimbine,  it has been extensively  studied and marketed as a drug listed in the PDR,  ( Physician Desk Reference). Some articles have recently determined it to be nothing more than a placebo which requires a physicians prescription.    
Thanks again for your question.
This information is provided for general medical education purposes only.  Please consult your physician for diagnostic and treatment options pertaining to your specific medical condition.

Sincerely;
HFHSM.D.-MS
*Keyword: Chordee