Beware of penile fracture!
Penile fractures are extremely painful and rather spectacular. Most of the time they are caused by a sudden slip during energetic lovemaking. So if you’re a fan of bedroom acrobatics, you should know about this.
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Fracture isn’t really an accurate term as no bone is broken in the penis. But even if it’s not accurate, the term penile fracture clearly describes what happens.
Penile fracture: a sudden crack in the night
She’s been driving you wild for quite some time now and, finally, tonight, the breakthrough you’ve been waiting for. But, at the height of your lovemaking, something terrible happens! There’s a very audible crack, followed by an intense pain that makes you cry out in agony. You know what’s happened immediately, just as you know that your night of passion is over! Your partner quickly realizes that something’s broken.
The penis seems “broken” as a result of the sudden impact. “The sudden blunt trauma during intercourse causes the rigid shell (tunica albuginea) around the penis to tear. The penis is relatively elastic when flaccid but becomes very rigid during erection,” explains Dr François Giuliano, from Bicêtre hospital’s urology department. As a result, the testicles can swell up and the penis turns dark blue. You’ll need to call the ambulance and apply an ice pack (ice wrapped in a towel) to the haematoma.
At hospital, doctors are often given rather strange explanations but one thing is certain: it takes quite an impact to cause this amount of damage so it’s useless trying to persuade them you’ve accidentally ‘bumped’ your morning erection. Sexual intercourse is the most common explanation for a penile fracture1 but it can occur during masturbation or even during the night, when you’re asleep.2
Although rare, such accidents seem to be becoming increasingly common. One study carried out in Saudi Arabia attributes the growing number of penile factures to masturbation!3
Penile fracture: use it, break it, fix it...
The patient has a number of concerns, quite apart from the pain: namely, will he be able to have sex again? What will be the physical consequences of the accident? But really, there’s no need to worry: a fracture doesn’t usually signal the end of sexual relations, provided that it’s treated quickly.
The diagnosis is made by clinical examination and by talking to the patient. If the doctor is worried that the urethra might be ruptured, he can perform an urethrogram (X ray of the urethra and the bladder) a cavernosogram (an x ray of the corpora cavernosa and blood flow) or more rarely an MRI.
According to Dr Giuliano “Rapid surgical intervention is required to remove the haematoma, repair the tear and limit the after-effects. Without rapid intervention, you can run the risk of complications from the intracavernosal haematoma, which can cause fibrosis of the erectile tissue leading to a loss of function. The appearance of fibrous patches or nodules can also cause deformations, such as curvature of the penis, and erectile problems.” But swift surgical intervention means that this can be avoided.
The painful memory of this event will inevitably cool a guy’s ardour for a while. But that’s all to the good as it takes several weeks for tunica albuginea to heal.
So should you tone down your bedroom routines, as a precautionary measure? No, there’s absolutely no need! Penile fractures are extremely rare. But it’s probably best to avoid sex on trampolines and the more extreme Kama Sutra positions!
1. J Urol 1977; 117: 725-7
2. Br J Urol 1991; 68: 622-5
3. J Natl Med Assoc. 2004 Feb; 96 (2): 299-33
Copyright © 2010 Doctissimo
Posted 28.06.2011
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