The Tribune

By Dr Greggory Pinto

This Saturday, December 7, not only marks the the first bionic penile implant surgery to be undertaken at Doctors Hospital, but also the commencement of a partnership between the Boston Scientific Company and Urology Care Bahamas. This partnership aims to offer world-class medical tourism at Doctors Hospital for bionic penile implants.

Penile implants were first developed in 1973, with the Boston Scientific AMS 700 inflatable penile prosthesis being the most technically advanced penile implant available worldwide.

Urology Care Bahamas has been recently named the regional referral centre by Boston Scientific for AMS 700 penile prosthesis placement procedures. The Boston Scientific company is a world-renowned innovator of medical technology and the developer of the AMS 700 penile inflatable prosthesis. The currently designed bionic penile implant is a revolutionary advancement in the treatment of severe erectile dysfunction and Peyronie’s disease (curvature of the erect penis). The use of the bionic penile implant in men with Peyronie’s disease can ensure the development of a healthy, happy fully satisfying sexual life by correcting the penile curvature and by providing the necessary full rigidity for penetration.

Men with a very poor blood and/or very poor nerve supply to the penis may regain full lasting erections with the placement of the inflatable penile prosthesis.

The AMS 700 penile implant/ bionic penis is the most popular in the Boston Scientific extensive penile inflatable line of devices as it perfectly mimics a natural erection and provides full rigidity when inflated and a natural, flaccid feel and appearance when deflated. The AMS 700 bionic penis is currently the only penile implant on the market that can increase both the girth and length of the patient’s penis by up to 25 percent.

The device is naturally concealed and feels natural to both the patient and the patient’s partner. The placement of the bionic penis does not involve a single cut to the penis itself, and after the procedure the recipient’s penis appears as before.

There is no disruption to the penile nerve supply during the implant procedure so that the nerve supply to the penis is left intact, thus the penile sensation is the preserved. No battery is required. The bionic penis stays harmlessly within a man for a lifetime.

The cylinders minimally invasively placed within the shaft of the penis, completely inflate with fluid contained within a liquid reservoir system within the groin. The cylinders deflate with a second press of a button, within the scrotum and the penis becomes flaccid.

The bionic penile implant placement procedure is performed minimally invasively as an outpatient procedure or as a short overnight hospital stay. The postoperative discomfort is minimal, short lasting and controlled by painkillers as needed for rarely more than one week postoperatively. Patients can commence sexual activity after four weeks.

The bionic penis is available to men from abroad as a medical tourism initiative and as an advanced world-class urological procedure available locally to Bahamian men.

Europe, specifically Germany, France and the United Kingdom, as well as North and South America and the Caribbean are being targeted in this medical tourism initiative.

The motto is: Enjoy sun, sand and sea and the pristine beauty of the Bahama Islands and be reborn so as to rise again to absolute glory with the discrete placement of the AMS 700 penile prosthesis/bionic penis.

Complete confidentiality is assured to all international and local patients receiving the device. Aliases are used and nobody will know the name or identity of the recipient.

The state of the art three part advanced system allows a man to have the ultimate full erection anytime with a simple press of a button, concealed within a patient’s scrotum. The erection lasts as long as the patient wishes, with the erection deflating with a second press of the button concealed with the scrotum.

The bionic penis cannot be accidentally inflated nor deflated. The bionic penis allows a man to orgasm multiple times, have full complete sensation and have children.

The length of the penis is maintained or increased with the device placement. The device itself is long-lasting and durable, and after 15 years nearly 90 percent of men with the AMS 700 bionic penis implant have had no issues with the device.

Approximately 10 percent of bionic penis recipients may require a minimal revision procedure for the device after 15 to 20 years plus.

Severe erectile dysfunction is often caused by poor blood and/or nerve supply as a result of diabetes mellitus, hypertension, atherosclerosis, sickle cell disease, collagen vascular disease, previous prostate cancer surgery, colorectal cancer surgery or radiation, amongst innumerable medical conditions that could lead to severe erectile dysfunction. Peyronie’s disease involves the formation of fibrous plaques within the shaft the penis that leads to curvature of the erect penis. In severe cases of Peyronie’s disease, the curvature of the erect penis is so severe that men cannot penetrate their partner and erections are sometimes accompanied by pain.

Severe erectile dysfunction secondary to a very poor blood and nerve supply to the penis or secondary to Peyronie’s disease, with severe curvature of the erect penis may be treated by the implantation of a bionic penis as a last line of management.

A man can always rise again and have a fully satisfying sexual life, even after years of despair and no erections or a severe curvature of their erect penises.

Never ever give up hope or believe that your glory days are gone forever. Men with severe erectile dysfunction, from those in their late teens to men approaching a century of life on this earth, are potential candidates for the bionic penile implant.

A young man with sickle cell disease or childhood diabetes might have no erection at age 20, just as a 90-year-old man might have no erections secondary to clogged arteries- atherosclerosis.

The bionic penis is a last treatment option and not the first. There are several myths that must be busted in regards to the bionic penile implant.

Myth #1: A bionic penis implant is the least desirable erectile dysfunction treatment

The patient satisfaction rate for the AMS 700 penile inflatable prosthesis is 94 percent in most major studies. The satisfaction rates for Viagra (52 percent) or penile injections (41 percent) are much lower.

Myth #2: The bionic penis implant feels unnatural and is seen and felt by the sexual partner.

The penile inflatable implant is minimally invasively, placed in a procedure performed under general anaesthesia that can be done as an outpatient procedure, requiring not a single incision to the penile skin and no scars to the penis. The penis itself will look and feel the same before and after the procedure. Sexual partners will not be able to feel that the bionic penis implant exists but they will benefit and enjoy the fully sustained rigidity of the device. The bionic penile implant works every time; anytime for as long as you want and as many times as you want. The device allows full natural feeling sensation with the ability to orgasm multiple times and conceive a child.

Myth #3: The penile implant/bionic penis procedure is long, complex and painful.

The implant procedure is relatively quick taking about one hour and it is minimally invasive and can be done as an outpatient procedure. The recovery is minimal and patients are back to regular routine later the same day or the next.

Myth #4: “I am too old and I am not a candidate for a bionic penis because of my diabetes mellitus, hypertension and cardiovascular disease.”

You are never too old to be an excellent candidate for a penile prosthesis. Most penile prosthesis patients have multiple medical conditions including diabetes mellitus, hypertension and cardiovascular disease that led to the severe erectile dysfunction in the first place.

Myth #5: The bionic penile implant is an experimental device.

Penile prosthesis devices have been in existence since 1973 and they have been advanced throughout the many years to the current version, the state of the art three system, naturally feeling, completely concealed, durable and reliable implant.

The Boston Scientific Company is at the forefront in terms of innovation of the bionic penile implants. Simply put, the bionic penile implant allows men to have an erection at will, any time, with full rigidity and full sensation.

You can rise from the dead to a level of glorious manhood that you may never have experienced before. No battery. Simple to use. Press a concealed button activator placed in the scrotum to inflate and press the button again to deflate. Increase the length and girth of your manhood by as much as 25 percent with the AMS inflatable penile prosthesis.

You will always be ready 100 percent of the time, with the penile implant. The device can be placed confidentially as a relatively quick minimally invasive procedure and you can be Reborn as a new man with a manhood that is fully rigid and always ready.

Erectile dysfunction management must address the root cause. Uncontrolled or undiagnosed diabetes or hypertension is often the cause of worsening erectile function. There is a very strong correlation between heart disease and erectile dysfunction.

Erectile dysfunction might be an early sign of atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease. Cardiovascular full workup in men with erectile dysfunction may save their life in the future and allow treatment for early heart disease.

Management of uncontrolled diabetes or hypertension could prevent worsening erectile function and help prevent damage to other organs of the body such as the kidneys, heart and eyes. Bionic penile implant placement is the last line of treatment for severe erectile dysfunction.

When the “blue pill” stops working or it never worked, or when penile injections are ineffective, a bionic penile implantation could allow you to rise from the dead again and again.

Seek completely confidential, compassionate and comprehensive urological care for erectile dysfunction. State-of-the-art bionic penile inflatable implants are readily available in the Bahamas.

• Dr Greggory Pinto is a Bahamian urologist who has trained in South Africa, Germany, France and India. He is a member of the European Association of Urologists. Dr Pinto can be reached at Urology Care Bahamas at the Surgical Suite, Centreville Medical Centre, Collins Avenue and Sixth Terrace. Call 326 1929, e-mail welcome@urologycarebahamas.com, or visit www.urologycarebahamas.com.