While men’s reproductive health issues are extremely common, few things can be more embarrassing for a man than issues with intimacy and sexual intercourse. One issue that can be particularly troublesome is called Peyronie’s disease (PD), which leads to a curved penis that can be a real issue in romantic relationships. At Low T Guru in Frisco, TX, near Dallas, TX, Dr. Jeffrey Buch provides men effective treatment options for this condition.
Peyronie’s disease is a condition that causes pieces of flat scar tissue (plaques) to form beneath the skin of the penis. These plaques can often be felt through the skin of the penis and can be painful, cause the penis to have a bend, curve, or have an indentation during erections.
To understand why these plaques cause curvature or indentations, it helps to know how the penis works and its anatomy. The penis contains three tubes:
The tunica albuginea is a sheath that forms around these three tubes, and when plaques in Peyronie’s disease form, they cause the tunica albuginea to lose flexibility. This causes part of the penis to bend in a certain direction, depending on where the plaques have formed. Most of the time, plaques form on the top of the penis and cause it to curve up during erections, but if the plaque forms on the side or bottom, the penis will tend to curve sideways or down. Plaques that encircle the penis may cause an indentation, or a “bottleneck” appearance, or may make the penis shorter.
In addition to leading to embarrassment about the appearance of the penis, these curvatures can cause other issues such as pain during erections and intercourse and inadequate stiffness during erections. In severe cases, sexual intercourse may be difficult or even impossible due to the penis curvature. All of this results in significant mental health consequences: up to three-quarters of men who have Peyronie’s disease are either depressed or under significant stress because of it.
Most often, a minor penis injury is what causes Peyronie’s disease to occur. This can include sports injuries, other accidents, or injuries during sexual intercourse, such as the partner’s pubic bone putting too much pressure on the penis. These injuries can damage the tunica albuginea, which causes scar tissue to develop and form plaques.
There are two primary stages of Peyronie’s disease:
Often, Dr. Jeffrey Buch can tell if you have the condition simply by conducting a physical examination because the plaques can be felt beneath the surface of the skin. Dynamic ultrasound or other imaging studies may be necessary to determine where the plaque is located and how blood is flowing through the penis.
There are several Peyronie’s disease therapy options available. The right treatment for you will depend on various factors, including whether the condition is affecting your erections and your sexual relationship, whether the curvature is worsening or has remained steady over time, and whether you have pain during intercourse. In general, treatments for Peyronie’s disease fall into four categories:
If erections are painful or embarrassing due to a curve in your penis, it is important to know that you don’t have to live with the condition and effective treatment options are available. At Low T Guru, Dr. Jeffrey Buch provides non-judgmental, comprehensive men’s reproductive health care that focuses on treating the underlying cause to help you achieve the best results from your care. If you are a new patient, we encourage you to call our Frisco, TX near Dallas, TX office today at (972) 430-4554. Existing patients can reach us at (972) 612-7131.
Dr. Jeffrey Buch, a graduate from the University of Michigan Medical School, Residency in Urology from the Albany Medical Center of Union College in Albany NY and Fellowship in Male Reproduction and Microsurgery from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, is a highly skilled specialist in Male Reproductive Medicine with over 34 years of experience.
With a nationally recognized practice in Frisco Texas, he has authored articles in many journals while undertaking the training of other urologists in his field.
Dr. Buch’s passion is to create a partnership of care with his patients to address their medical concerns and provide them the best possible service with respect to Male Reproductive Health.
