A Dutch man recovering from colon cancer secretly suffered from a 2-day erection before alerting doctors to his dilemma.
A Dutch man, who wishes to remain anonymous, experienced a 2-day erection while in the hospital recovering from surgery treating his colon cancer. He had felt too ashamed to alert nurses about his problem. Additionally, he was nervous that they would get the wrong idea.
When the man finally informed the doctors, they immediately took steps to ascertain that the erection was not of a sexual nature. Four hours after their initial inspection, his penis remained erect. Consequently, this immediately was a sign of grave concern to the medical staff.
Dangerous erections!
It turns out that this man who had a prolonged erection experienced a very rare, but seriously dangerous condition called priapism. What is most upsetting is that he endured this horrifying situation as long as he did, embarrassed to seek help.
His Urologist feared the man would suffer permanent damage and arranged for emergency surgeryto attempt to rectify the problem. What he would have to endure to cure his unceasing erection is something no man should ever have to experience.
After trying all the preliminary options: ice, exercise, and ejaculation, surgeons had no other choice but to insert a shunt into the end of his penis. Surgeons turned the shunt 90 degrees, so the blood could be drained, enabling his penis to return to a flaccid state.
Warning to all men
Unfortunately, this gentleman developed permanent erectile dysfunction as a result of waiting so long to alert doctors to his predicament. After a therapeutic course of viagra, he was able to recover from his impotence. The doctors had also offered him the option of a penile implant, but he decided not to have one inserted.
Nevertheless, the horrific experience this man suffered should be a warning for all men. Priapism is a serious condition that needs urgent medical attention. Understanding what it is could save precious time and preserve future erectile function. If you know the name of the disease, when informing a medical professional, this can help reduce your feelings of embarrassment and reluctance when getting the medical help urgently required.
What is priapism?
If your erection fails to become flaccid within 6 hours, it is imperative that you seek immediate medical attention. You will likely be concerned as the erection will not feel pleasant, and instead will be quite painful. Ejaculation will not make the erection go away. You will realize it is not a normal erection as the head of the penis will be soft.
The three main types of priapism are as follows:
– Low blood flow priapism (ischaemic):
This is the most common type of priapism, but unfortunately, it is also the most serious. Any blockage to the blood flow in the penis causes this type.
– High blood flow priapism (non-ischaemic):
Usually occurs as a result of an injury to the perineum or the genitals. Fortunately, this is very rare, however, any injury that occurs to the part of the body between the anus and the testicles could become the catalyst for this condition.
– Recurrent or intermittent priapism (stuttering):
This condition is similar to ischaemic, however, the erections come and go for periods of 2-3 hours.
What can cause priapism?
- Sickle cell anemia
- Certain medications, for example, warfarin, high blood pressure medications, antipsychotics, antidepressants, and alprostadil.
- Recreational drugs such as cannabis, ecstasy, methamphetamine, and cocaine
- Thalassaemia
- Leukaemia
- Multiple myeloma
- Prostate cancer
- Bladder cancer
- Spinal cord injury
- Blood clots
- Fabry disease
