Congenital Penile Curvature

[franciscodervallen]

Hello everyone
I am very glad I found this forum as a precious source of valuable knowledge and understanding companions. I am 18yo living in Italy. At the onset of puberty, I realised something was wrong with my penis, as it bended downward. At first, I waited and naively hoped it could go away on its own, but then I decided to tell my parents and later realised I had ventral congenital curvature (about 50 degrees) with a slight torsion of the penis on the axis. I must say these years have been very hard, not only because of the condition in itself (which is extremely damaging for a teenage boy who is trying to build up self-esteem), but also because almost everyone around me has always underestimated this birth defect and told me I could still try to have sexual intercourses. I must confess this is not going to happen until I fix this problem, as not only it would affect my psychologically during the intercourse (making it even difficult to have an erection), but as far as I understood It is also risky in terms of possible micro-traumas to the penis (it is not a coincidence that some of you on this forum who have developed Peyronie had an history of underlying congenital curvature). Feeling so abandoned by everyone and lost (I suffer from depression and anxiety because of this), I came here to look for your help by asking a few things.

1. I know there is no study and evidence on the effectiveness of traction device for congenital penile curvature, as these were born to break down the plaques. However, I was wondering if there was anyone in my condition (congenital curvature only) who has ever tried it. In case there is not, would you recommend getting one and using it gently and gradually? Which is one is the best for my downward curvature? (RestoreX, PMP, Phallosan, Jes Extender...)

2. My age is quite critical, so would you recommend getting surgery done by a paediatric urologist with experience with hypospadias, or to an adult urologists? I ask this also because I know for sure that urologists are not focused on external genitalia as paediatric urologists are, as they deal with other conditions such as prostate, bladder etc.

3. I live in North Italy, and I know a couple of good doctors here. However, I would be willing to travel to different countries (and possibly continents) if there were to be more skilled doctors. Could you recommend me the best surgeons in Europe? I am aware on this forum Dr. Franklin Kuehhas, but I didn't understand if there is a sort of marketing thing under this...

4. In terms of size, opposed to some of you with congenital curvature on this forum, my penis is average (14 cm). Therefore I would like to minimise penile length otherwise there is the risk it gets way too small (and at this point I don't know if it's better to have a curved penis or a small one...). Are STAGE or Egydio techniques really more shortening-free than Nesbit as marketed? Has anyone of you ever heard of Shaeer's Corporal Rotation III?

For now, these are my main questions. I really hope many of you will get back to me. Any HELP is appreciated. Thank you very much!  

[LWillisjr]

Francisco,
I have a lot of compassion for young guys like yourself with these types of issues. I understand you have a congenital curve and not Peyronies. Traction is recommended for Peyronies to stretch scarring tissue. You are correct there are few if any studies using traction to stretch your original tissue (Tunica). Even if you could have some success at stretching Tunica tissue, I highly doubt you would see enough improvement to correct a 50 degree downward curve.

I only recommend surgery as a LAST resort. But in your case I think it may be the logical choice. Feel free to send me a private message if you have any questions on this.

I don't know who the better surgeons are in Europe. You can use the search feature here which I think may help you. You mention hypospadias which, so I can only assume you also have this issue?? And I agree this could complicate your surgery for curve correction. You may need to get the hypospadias issue corrected first, and deal with the curvature correction second.

I would highly suggest you go to an adult Andrologist. You definitely are at the end of your pediatric years and I would definitely go the adult route.

[franciscodervallen]

Dear,
Thank you very much for your detailed and understanding message. I mentioned hypospadias NOT because I have it, but because paediatric surgeons are more used to dealing with the penis only, while adult andrologists deal with a range of non-related issues.

I am aware the traction device would never be able to correct my curvature, but I wanted to try it to see if there could be any improvement prior to the surgery (which I am pretty sure I will undergo). Do you think there are any risks with a sort of experiment? Which device should I get? In these months, I contacted hundreds (I am not exaggerating) of urologists and not even a single one has managed to give me the answers that I am searching for.

Thank you for your precious support!

[LWillisjr]

We have a whole section of the forum devoted to traction and traction devices.
You could certainly try traction. Just follow the recommendations and don't get overly aggressive with the amount of tension with your traction device.

Traction and traction devices

 

[Hawk]

I want to welcome you to the forum.  I am glad you found us, and I hope we can provide some information and support.  Like LWillisJr, I would NOT go to a general urologist or a pediatric surgeon.  Go to a surgeon who is a specialist in corrective penile surgery.  Rather than going with a Nesbit or plication surgery to shorten the dorsal portion of the penis, I would look for a surgeon who could lengthen the ventral area with a type of incision/grafting.

Do NOT rush to do this.  Take time to find a surgeon who does many of these surgeries a year.  I cannot recommend a surgeon in Europe because I am not familiar with many surgeons outside of the U.S. Also, this is not classic Peyronies Disease surgery, so I am not knowledgeable about how much of a difference that makes.  My guess is that your surgery might be a little easier, but I can't be certain.

I am not a medical person, but if it were my penis, I would try traction because if you are reasonable and apply only normal pressure, you are unlikely to cause more problems.  If you were very lucky and could improve to a 30-degree bend over the next 24 months, maybe you would forget the surgery, but I think that is unlikely.  For one thing, a ventral bend is more problematic than a dorsal bend, which fits the female anatomy a little better.  I also suspect a ventral bend is a little more challenging to surgically correct because the urethra runs along the ventral portion of the penis, but much of this is only my speculation.

Sexually, a ventral bend is best accommodated with rear entry positions.

I recommend that you write the most concise post you can and ask Dr. Landon Trost his opinion.  He has his own board on our forum, and he answers questions.  He cannot make recommendations to you about your case over the Internet, but he can give general information relating to similar issues. Since he developed the RestoreX, he is knowledgeable about traction in general but probably not about congenital curvature.  He is a very honest, compassionate, and helpful man who you can trust.  His priority is the best interest of those he can help, NOT money. While he does not specialize in this type of surgery, he has participated in deformity corrective surgeries in the past, and he knows far more than non-medical forum members.

Normally, you have to have at least 5 posts to post questions to the doctors, but in this case, I will bump your post counter up so you can post on his board.  I will also help you if you have any trouble formulating a concise post, although your English seems to be excellent.

Here is the link to his board --> https://www.peyroniesforum.net/index.php/board,66.0.html

[franciscodervallen]

Dear Hawk,
I really thank you for your welcome and your exhaustive answer. I think I will go for traction, with care and moderation. All the andrologists I have contacted (the serious ones), are against grafting, if surgery is done without the simultaneous concomitant insertion of penile implant. However, I am aware Dr. Bush and Dr. Warren Snodgrass (two of the most expert in hypospadias repair) carry out the surgery by lengthening the short side (in a manner that is still not clear not my mind).

I will definitely create a concise post and ask Dr. Landon Trost.

I have another question: unfortunately, as a sort of "anti-stress" throughout all my teenage years (the curvature had already been recorded) I used to wrap around itself the penis (obviously in a flaccid state), by folding the foreskin of the penis "inwards" to the point the the penis became a small ball (and then I would also squeeze "this ball"), and I did this every single day for a considerable amount of time (even up to 1/2 hours). The penis never got cold so I guess there has never been a cut of the blood supply, but I am pretty sure this has worsened the curvature and damaged all the penis tissues. In addition, lately I noticed some erections problems in the upper part of the penis, and the glans appears to be soft during erection and I think "playing" with it has played a role in this. I feel terrible for having done this (I stopped it as soon as I realised how harmful it was, last August) but I can't change the past... What I am supposed to do know? Should I undergo a penis ultrasound in order to assess possible veins damages and get diagnosed with venous leak/soft glans syndrome? Could the use of traction device and VED partially "make up" for this mistake?

As you can see, this is a lot to carry at such a young age, considering that in the meantime I have to focus on my economics studies at university and I don't have much time. Therefore, I ask for your advices and recommendations.

[LWillisjr]

Will let Hawk weigh in here, but I don't think this thing you did while flaccid did not cause any problems. You didn't do anything to yourself, and you need to get over that. You were born with this congenital curve. You haven't done anything to make it worse or better. As Hawk said traction with care would be fine to try. It might help, and it might not. Forget about the past, find a good doctor and focus on the future.

[franciscodervallen]

Dear LWillisjr,
It is very kind of you to advise me not to blame myself and to focus on the future. For me, it is very important to have found this forum. This congenital curvature (along with other health conditions) made me realise how fundamental is to be in a good health and unfortunately how most of the doctors ignore us, to the point that I decide I will start medschool after finishing my economics studies.

Regarding the traction, I know there is an entire section dedicated to that, but I would like to know if you had any specific recommendations regarding my case (since it is congenital and not Peyronies Disease). In particular, which specific device is most suitable for a congenital downward curvature, considering the fact that I go to classes every day and cannot afford to spend hours and hours with it.

Sincerely,
Francisco.