Dr. Andrew Kramer on Revising and Upsizing an LGX Implant
As Baltimore, Maryland penile implant surgeon Dr. Andrew Kramer points out, the inflatable penile implant is an ideal treatment for men suffering from erectile dysfunction. Also known as male impotence, erectile dysfunction is a sexual abnormality that prevents the penis from achieving and maintaining an erection, making sexual intercourse impossible.
Impotence also leads to a reduction in penile length and girth. This is another issue the implant can resolve by providing the penis an expansion in size.
An implant doesn’t always guarantee satisfaction, however. A patient may find himself disappointed with the size expansion the implant provides, or the implant may stop working altogether. To resolve such issues, the patient will need to go to a penile implant surgeon for assistance.
photo/ skeeze via pixabay
Malfunctioning components
When a penile implant fails to emulate an erection, the problem often stems from one or more of said implant’s core components.
In the case of one patient who came to Dr. Andrew Kramer for help, his LGX implant was found to have a defective cylinder.
Most penile implants are composed of three key structures: the fluid-filled reservoir, which is positioned within the abdomen; two inflatable cylinders, placed within the penis; and a pump, inserted into the scrotum.
When the pump is squeezed, the fluid from the reservoir moves into the cylinders, where it remains. This causes the cylinders to expand in length and girth as well as stay rigid, emulating a penile erection. If even one of the cylinders is broken, however, the whole system can fail, according to Dr. Andrew Kramer.
A quick fix
To repair a broken implant, the patient has to undergo a surgical procedure involving the removal of the malfunctioning structures and their replacement with new ones.
While only one of the patient’s cylinders was broken, Dr. Andrew Kramer opted to have both of the original cylinders replaced. To further ensure the implant worked at optimum performance, he replaced the pump and refilled the reservoir with fresh fluid.
The patient was also discontent with the size expansion the original implant provided. This meant Dr. Andrew Kramer had to upsize the implant, which necessitated the use of longer cylinders with fewer rear tips (18 cm +1 rear tip) than the original (15 cm + 3 rear tips). To accommodate the additional length of the cylinders, long pump tubes were used, with the excess tubing being excised to achieve the required length.
Throughout the surgery, Dr. Andrew Kramer took steps to ensure the safety of the patient. This meant handling the surgical instruments, the implant’s components, and the patient’s tissue with exceptional care, as well as constantly irrigating the wound with an antibiotic to prevent bacterial infection.
As evidenced by this and similar cases, the repair and upsizing of a penile implant is a quick, simple, and safe procedure.
The patient’s satisfaction
The inflatable penile implant boasts extremely high satisfaction rates thanks to its ability to emulate a natural erection, and counter the loss in penile girth and length caused by impotence. And while all devices can malfunction or fail to meet one’s expectations, a simple surgical procedure can repair and upsize an implant to a patient’s satisfaction.
Author: James Daniel
