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Sex and Intimacy in People Living with MS

Urinary Health

What to Expect From a Penile Pump Implant

Summary & Participants

For many men suffering from erectile dysfunction, the solution to their problem lies not in medications or sex therapy but rather in a surgically implanted device called an Internal Penile Pump.

Medically Reviewed On: July 02, 2008

Webcast Transcript

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: Well, the operation, the way we do it, we do it through a small, one-inch opening in the scrotum, so we don't make any cuts, any opening whatsoever in the penis. We want to preserve the penile skin. That's the sensitive part of the penis, and we want to avoid that area. We put it through underneath from the scrotal sac area. That's where we make our little opening, and through that opening we first -- the operations is really three parts. The first part is putting the little sleeves inside the penis, and we do that through a tiny opening about a quarter of an inch in the penile shaft all the way down at the base of the penis underneath the sac where the testicles are.

The next part of the operation is placing the pump, and the pump is placed between the two testicles. There's a little area there where there is a little bit of fat, and we put that there in a way that is accessible, yet looks cosmetically appealing so that a patient can go to a locker room, be naked in front of other men and not look funny. We want to make sure --

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: Let me pick up on that point, because, obviously, cosmetics are very important. Do couples have unrealistic expectations? Do they have an idea of how this is going to turn out in advance?

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: I think some do and some don't. I think the most important thing is for a man to understand that what we will do is we'll make his penis functional again. He'll be able to make love and feel the regular feelings of lovemaking. The penis may not be as big as it used to, but what we want them to expect is that they'll be functional.

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: After the procedure, how long does it take to recover? How long does it take for a man to be able to make love?

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: Well, it varies. We've had patients -- for example, the other week, we did a patient on Monday, and on Thursday he was playing basketball one-on-one with his son. On the other hand, we did another patient two days after that, and that's over a month ago, and the patient hasn't yet been active. So it really varies. In general, it takes about two to three weeks to feel totally normal, and about four weeks before they're able to be sexually active.

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: Is this a normal thing, the partner-to-partner counseling, to some extent, patient-to-patient guidance? Is this a good thing? Does it happen commonly?

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: Yeah, it is extremely helpful for patients, and we have a list of patients who are willing to speak to possible patients who are interested in getting one of these.

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: Do a lot of patients ask for it?

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: A lot of patients ask for it. Some ask for it and they never call. They're a little bit shy. And when they call, John and Jim will tell you they're a little bit hesitant about asking the questions, and a lot of patients will say to me, "Doctor, I trust you. I really don't need to call." I say, "Well, you know, you're not calling to check on me. You're calling to become more informed and to educate yourself on how it's going to feel after you have this procedure, because once you have it, I want you to be perfectly happy with it." So it's important for patients to call.

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: It's a difficult thing to talk about.

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: It's a difficult thing to talk about, but one of the things I appreciate the most is very often patients will call, and they'll get the partner on the phone, and the partner will very often talk about how it is to make love to a person who has one, and what was the process that it took to get one.

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: Dr. François Eid, I want to thank you for being here.

J. FRANÇOIS EID, MD: Thank you, David.

DAVID R. MARKS, MD: And thank you all for being here once again. I appreciate it. Thanks for joining the webcast. I'm Dr. David Marks. Goodbye.

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