What is Peyronie's disease
“Tunica Albuginea” is the tougher layer of connective tissue that surrounds the soft Corpora Cavernosa. For reasons unknown to science at this current stage, scar tissue begins to form in the “Tunica Albuginea”. This tissue prevents the normal expansion of the penis during erections and, in time, forms a permanent bend in the penis to one side.

The disease is initially painful, but the pain will eventually subside on its own. There is absolutely no need to reach out for painkillers or for one to fear falling into the trap of long-term abuse of such pills. The sole effect of this disease is the curvature of the penis, which is only visible when the penis is erect, and possibly a shortening of the penis in the flaccid state. Most men suffering from it are able to have sex with their partners and experience no discomfort during sexual intercourse. However, if the penis curvature gets close to 90 degrees angle, sexual intercourse will become a problem.

This disease is documented to affect men of all races and ages, but it is most commonly seen in Caucasian males ages 40 and up. It is not contagious and is certainly not related to any form of cancer or other serious medical conditions. There is no known universal cure and some of the men which science was able to help have experienced some form of relapses. The list of medical solutions developed to fight Peyronie’s disease is quite large, but not one of them was proved to be the best solution to the problem.

Cures for the disease

Surgery
One of the highly recommended treatments is open surgery. Severe cases are solved through the insertion of implants via surgical intervention. Some years ago, surgery was the method of choice for treating Peyronie’s disease because there were no clinically proven alternatives until now (more of that in the latter paragraphs). Penile implants are plastic cylinders, either inflatable or solid, which are placed inside the Corpora Cavernosa. The surgeon can either place the implants inside the penis and let them do the work of straightening out the organ, or he can try to bend the penis against the plaque in order to increase the implant’s chance of successfully correcting the curvature.

Tissue Grafts
Yet another widespread way of attempting to treat Peyronie’s disease is the use of tissue grafts. This procedure entails the complete surgical removal of the lump of plaque that develops on the penis and straightening the penis in order to bring it back to the original shape. Surgeons usually advise patients to accept this approach in cases featuring severely curved penises.

Nesbit Procedure
During this procedure the penis is filled with a sterile physiologic salt solution in order to force an artificial erection. The surgeon gathers with a clamp the outer side of the bend, which forces the Tunica Albuginea to straighten the penis.

Collagenase and Verapamil Injections
This produce sees the use of Collagenase injections to break down the plaque and remove it or Verapamil injections to prevent new plaque from forming. One of the preferred treatments uses Vitamin E to help the skin heal and reduce the plaque. Since the skin healing properties of Vitamin E have been known for quite some time, the use of this vitamin to contain Peyronie’s has been a popular solution since the 1940s. Another widespread treatment is Potaba, a short form of the proper technical name: Potassium aminobenzoate. Medical studies have shown that Potaba can help men suffering from Peyronie’s disease to a certain extent, but we still await clear results of this substance.

Traction device (penis stretchers)
One of the best ways of dealing with Peyronie’s disease is to use a traction device to straighten the penis. Despite the controversy surrounding such novel approaches as traction devices, several clinical studies have already been conducted in order to assess the effectiveness of this technique. The traction device works by forcing the tissue that makes up the penis to expand instead of retracting and increasing the curve. By using the traction device on a regular basis, the men who took part in clinical studies have been able to reduce their curvatures and at the same time increase the length and girth of their penises.