Visit to Dr. Levine, May 2012" - Treatment Q&A

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james1947

I find it important to post our member Buckeye report after visiting Dr. Levine. (Thanks Buckeye)
Dr. Levine is one of the few very bests Peyronie's doctors available around the globe.
I am proposing to everyone that have an apointemt with a new doctor to print it out or to take notes

James

Buckeye post on May 09, 2012

Hi all, here's an update on my appt. w/ Dr. Levine. First of all, it was a breath of fresh air to finally meet with someone who really cared and knew about my problem and what to do and less about just cycling me through the office as quickly as they could. I've been mulling over the direction I want to go, but here's a summary:

1. He confirmed my own measurements of a 40-48 degree upward bend (he's the first uro that has actually done the ultra sound tests and measurements) with a slight indentation on the left side and that it was probably from an injury sustained about 2 years ago. He also confirmed that my current oral regiment was good and to continue it - three 400 mg pentox per day; two 500 mg l'arginine per day; three 100 mg ubiquinol per day; and one 5 mg Cialis per day. He also said that the VED protocol was OK, but he preferred traction over VED relating it to putting braces on teeth and that intuitively a sustained remodeling with traction for 6 to 8 hours a day is better than short VED cycles over a 15 to 30 minute timeframe. He felt the traction to be effective should be done a minimum of 3 to 4 hours a day. He acknowledged that both approaches - VED and traction - have shown they help many patients, so he didn't really object that I'm using it. He didn't feel that there was any harm as long as I was careful in my usage.

2. Path forward: continue what I'm doing but add traction. He gave me information on the company that did the study and which uses the Fastsize device. I've ordered it and have begun using it. I'm wondering if I should have ordered a X4Lab device as it seems to have better customer ratings for comfort, but decided to go with Dr. Levine's recommendation as he's the expert. X4Lab sells the the comfort strap and support piece separately that's suppose to work on 99% of other devices, so I may go ahead and buy it and try it. Right now my thought is to continue this combination of approaches (VED and traction) for a few months and then consider adding verapamil injections. If those don't work then my thinking is to go directly to a penile implant as I've had ED before the Peyronies.

In summary, I'm taking it a step at a time. I may or may not wait the full 3 months before I go back for the VI - I'm sort of waiting to hear about the xiaflex trials. I forgot to ask about them but have a follow up question and am waiting to hear back if they know anything about where that stands.

By the way, I've completed 15 weeks on the 3-tube VED protocol and as Dr. Levine's measurement confirmed my degree of bend that I measured when I started the protocol, I have not seen a reduction in the curve. However, I feel I have an overall better/healthier penis since I've been using the VED. I believe I have recovered a bit of the length and girth that I've lost from the Peyronies Disease and the ED.

One other comment on my path forward. Dr. Levine uses at least 2 months of traction before doing an implant so doing the traction now will shortcut that step if I make the decision later to go with an implant. He feels the traction helps recover some of the lost length from the Peyronies and allows a larger sized implant.

Hope this update helps. I'll let you know when/what I hear back on the xiaflex. Bottom line - I'm really glad I made the decision to go to Dr. Levine. I also received a book Dr. Levine wrote on Peyronies Disease with the Fastsize device that I ordered. It's a good overall summary of Peyronies Disease and the various treatments. You can get it on Amazon - Understanding Peyronies Disease: A Treatment Guide to Curvature of the Penis. Everyone have a great day.

Blessings,]
Buckeye
Age 71, Peyronies from Jan 2009 following penis fracture during sex. Severe ED.
Lost 2" length and a lot of girth. Late start, still VED, Cialis & Pentox helped. Prostate surgery 2014.
Got amazing support on the forum