When oral medication does not work at all or worked at first but now no longer, then penis injections are usually the next step on the ladder to treat impotence.
Many men find that oral medications, such as sildenafil or tadalafil, don’t give an erection strong enough for sexual intercourse.
The option to move from oral medications to injections is usually offered to this group of patients. The active ingredient in this group of ED medications is prostaglandin E1.
A Doctor needs to prescribe this treatment for you, it is not available over the counter. Also, you will need some tuition on how to use it, since it is something that you do at home just before you have sex.
Prostaglandin is available in various strengths, and it is a case of trial and error to see which dose is most effective for you to achieve a strong erection.
For lots of men, it works extremely well. However, this treatment has perhaps one major drawback that puts many men off this therapy.
The prospect of injecting your penis fills many men with dread. At Moorgate Andrology we see many men who simply won’t consider it. Although the needle that you use is very fine, it is still the thought of actually doing it that puts men off.
There is obviously some discomfort associated with the injection which is also a bit off-putting.
The main reason most men give to not want to use penis injections is that is interrupts their lovemaking. You literally have to stop to go and put the injection in. Men report that “the moment” is lost in this process and it becomes just too intrusive. If you are single then you also need to make your excuses to disappear into the bathroom to put the injection in, not ideal.
When guys push back on penis injections with prostaglandin, the next stage is a penile implant. This is considered the end game of treating erectile dysfunction, there is no going back when an implant has been placed. For many men, this is the ideal choice as it gives them a guaranteed erection with a simple bending up of the penis (in the case of a malleable implant) or pumping up in the case of an inflatable implant.
If your oral medications are no longer working and you are wondering what to do next, talk to a Urologist to explore other options. Just because your oral meds don’t work, it does not mean that you still have to suffer from erectile dysfunction.
