What Are Penile Implants?
Erectile dysfunction can affect any man at any age. There are various treatment options like medications, pills, testosterone treatment, and injections. But some of those treatments may not work for some men. Some doctors might recommend getting a penile Implant. There are two types of penile implant procedures that can help with different problems. One is inflatable, and one is non-inflatable. The purpose is to help with erectile dysfunction and with transgenders. Sometimes it’s used to help reconstruct a penis, if necessary. Here, Happy Urology will discuss penile implants surgery, from how it works to how much it costs.
How Does a Penile Implant Work?
Penile implants work to help maintain an erection or to help with cosmetic effects. The two types are inflatable implants and non-inflatable (malleable) rods; Dr. Gheiler recommends the inflatable for nearly every man. An inflatable penile implant consists of two cylinders and a pump. The two cylinders are placed in the penis, and the pump is in the scrotum. To achieve an erection, the person will squeeze the pump and the cylinders by filling them with saline solution. The non-inflatable implant has a surgeon implanting two flexible rods into the penis. The rods don’t change in size or stiffness. The implants are always semi-rigid, causing the penis to feel the same way. But people can move it into any position they want.
Life With Implants?
After the procedure, it will take about 4-6 weeks to recover from penile implant surgery. Men with implants report high satisfaction with the results after the procedure — 83 percent of patients and 85 percent of partners in one series a year or more after surgery1 — and the device is designed to work without interfering with sensation, ejaculation, or orgasm.2 The implant leaves a small surgical scar that most people cannot see. When wearing clothes, the implants are not noticeable, so you can feel confident wearing the clothes you want. Many implants last 15 years or more: in a two-decade series of 2,384 first-time inflatable implants, an estimated 60 percent were still in place at fifteen years without revision, and freedom from mechanical breakage was 71 percent.3
How Much Does the Implant Cost?
With Dr. Gheiler, a self-pay inflatable implant costs $20,000 to $25,000 all-inclusive — surgeon, device, facility and anesthesia. Most men do not pay that: Medicare covers the surgery when erectile dysfunction has a documented medical cause,4 and many commercial plans do as well, subject to each plan’s exclusions and prior authorization. The full breakdown, including what a Medicare patient actually pays, is on our cost and insurance page.
Success Rate
No surgery is entirely free of complications, though the implant has one of the highest satisfaction rates of any erectile dysfunction treatment in head-to-head studies.5 Some of the risks are.
- Infection
- Scar tissue
- Pump failure
- Fluid not properly draining
The majority of the complications can be fixed with additional surgery. The implant is still a mechanical device, so it has the risk of breaking. If any complications arise, contact your doctor immediately.
Happy Urology
If you are experiencing erectile dysfunction, whatever treatments you have or have not tried, contact Happy Urology for a consultation or to learn more about penile implants surgery. We will help you with any questions or concerns about penile Implants or erectile dysfunction medication. We also offer many different urological services for your needs.
Sources. 1. Jorissen C, et al. Clinical outcome: patient and partner satisfaction after penile implant surgery. Curr Urol 2019;13(2):94–100. doi:10.1159/000499286. 2. Levine LA, et al. Penile prosthesis surgery: current recommendations from the International Consultation on Sexual Medicine. J Sex Med 2016;13(4):489–518. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2016.01.017. 3. Wilson SK, et al. Long-term survival of inflatable penile prostheses: single surgical group experience with 2,384 first-time implants spanning two decades. J Sex Med 2007;4(4 Pt 1):1074–9. doi:10.1111/j.1743-6109.2007.00540.x. 4. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. National Coverage Determination 230.4, Diagnosis and Treatment of Impotence. cms.gov. 5. Kucuk EV, et al. Erectile dysfunction patients are more satisfied with penile prosthesis implantation compared with tadalafil and intracavernosal injection treatments. Andrology 2016;4(5):952–6. doi:10.1111/andr.12237. Sources describe the cited studies, not this practice’s results.
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