Penile implants have grown in both sophistication and effectiveness over the years. When all other treatments for erectile dysfunction have failed, these devices are what medical experts use to give back to sufferers the ability to experience an erection. Thanks to these devices, and the efforts of penile implant surgeons such as Dr. Andrew Kramer, countless men are now enjoying happy, satisfying lives.
As life-changing as penile implants are, they, like all devices, aren’t perfect and wear out over time. Generally speaking, a penile implant has a lifespan of between 8 and 12 years. Frequent use, however, may require it to be replaced sooner. It’s also possible for a penile implant to malfunction—though this happens far less often, with less than 5 percent of implants causing issues within the first five years post-surgery.
Baltimore, Maryland surgeon Dr. Andrew Kramer sees a lot of patients seeking his expertise for solutions to problems concerning penile implants. As such, he’s had plenty of experience repairing penile implants that are no longer working properly—as was the case with the patient in the above video.
How pumps work
The patient previously had a Titan penile implant. Its cylinders and reservoir were fine, but the pump was no longer doing what pumps are designed to do.
Pumps are inserted into the scrotum. When squeezed, it causes the fluid in the reservoir to move into and stay in the cylinders, causing the penis to go erect. Squeezing the release valve moves this fluid out of the cylinders and back into the reservoir, allowing the penis to become flaccid. In short, the pump plays an integral role in the process that enables the patient to have and to lose an erection.
Pumps come with a mechanism that prevents pumped fluid from returning to the reservoir. In the case of Dr. Andrew Kramer’s patient, however, the mechanism was broken. As a result, while the pump was able to send fluid into the cylinders, it was unable to keep said fluid from returning to the reservoir. The patient was therefore unable to maintain an erection.
Thankfully, repairing the pump was an extremely easy and quick procedure for Dr. Andrew Kramer.
Repairing the broken pump
The first step was to make an incision in the scrotal region for access to the pump and two cylinders. The old pump was then detached from the cylinders, after which the new pump was attached to the same cylinders. Dr. Andrew Kramer of course made sure to test the replacement pump to see if it worked as intended. When he was confident the pump, cylinders, and reservoir all performed their functions correctly, he inserted pump and cylinders into the tissue, then stitched the incision close.
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It is to be noted that to guarantee every patient’s safety, Dr. Andrew Kramer handles the surgical instruments, the implant, and the patient’s tissue with utmost care throughout the surgery. During the procedure, he also constantly irrigates the wound to reduce the risk of bacterial infection, and switches to new gloves when necessary. Dr. Andrew Kramer wants nothing more than for his patients to leave his clinic happy and satisfied with a successful surgery.
