Peyronie's Disease Information and Examples
Peyronie’s Disease is a disorder of the penis that is characterized by focal scarring and penile curvature. The principal symptom of the disorder is when men who develop this disorder consistently notice a bent or curved penis during erections. There is no set timetable for the development of the disorder, as some men may notice a penis curvature that develops gradually over a span of years, while other men may suddenly wake up one morning and notice their penis is significantly bent with a morning erection. While some penis curvature is completely normal and no cause for concern, an abnormal penis curvature caused by Peyronie’s disease can be quite drastic and come with other symptoms. The disease can also cause pain during an erection, prevent sexual intercourse, and can be associated with erectile dysfunction, which makes it difficult to achieve or maintain an erection. In some cases, the disease will resolve itself without any treatment, but oftentimes in order to resume a healthy sex life, treatment is necessary.
Most men are not even aware that this disease exists. In fact, many of our patients who come to our Center for Reconstructive Urology, located at UC, Irvine in Orange County, California, often have no idea what is wrong with them. They think they have a rare disease that they may have to “live with”, or believe they may have cancer. However, that is not the case as the disease can oftentimes be treated by an experienced urologist. Since most patients are unaware of the disease, there are often a plethora of questions, and below are some of the most frequently asked questions.
If you are a man suffering from Peyronie’s Disease, this website will provide you with all of the information and Peyronie’s disease pictures you need to help you better understand this disorder and the best available treatment option for you.
On the following pages, you can learn about normal penile anatomy and function, the potential causes and symptoms of the disease, and the current non-surgical options for the medical treatment of a crooked penis. If surgery is deemed as the best method of treatment, the surgery-plication and surgery-graft sections discuss surgical options to straighten penis curvature.
Patients with disabling penile curvature, which is when the curvature is so severe it prevents sexual intercourse, are often referred to Dr. Gelman at the Center for Reconstructive Urology. Men who develop an abnormal penis with a disabling curve should know that the curvature can be successfully treated, allowing them to resume sexual intercourse. Good candidates for surgery are patients who have tried various treatments with no success, including medications, topical creams or penis stretching devices. Dr. Gelman will perform a penile curvature correction on these patients, and they are then able to resume healthy sexual relations.