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Lost Sheep wrote:...in time, about 30 to 45 seconds

Around 30 seconds for me, too.

About 30 pumps, under a minute. Still arguing with insurance company, the office said it was approved, insurance denied after the fact. Worse case, I am getting billed for about $4000.

Deductible $300... insurance picked up the rest.... approximately 25 pumps

I'm scheduled to be implanted on July 24th and my insurance doesn't cover it. My quote is for $21,362.85 plus anesthesiologists charges that we don't know yet.

My was $20,000 with Cornell in Texas. I too was out of pocket so I brokered it through Surgeo.com. The amount covered everything including $50k of complication insurance. Their service was fantastic.

As for as pumps go I would imagine the number of pumps to inflate. That really depends on which one you get and the size. It take about 50 for me to max out and it only takes a minute or so.

Hope this helps,
Best of Luck

Piddlin wrote:My was $20,000 with Cornell in Texas. I too was out of pocket so I brokered it through Surgeo.com. The amount covered everything including $50k of complication insurance. Their service was fantastic.

As for as pumps go I would imagine the number of pumps to inflate. That really depends on which one you get and the size. It take about 50 for me to max out and it only takes a minute or so.

Hope this helps,
Best of Luck

My cost was $25,000 but I have good insurance through my job, so I only paid $500 deductible for surgery and 1 night stay in the Hospital.

4 months out of surgery and I'm 30+ pumps in under 2 minutes to get fully erect.

Medical aid paid every cent.

40 pumps. The joints of my thumps are a bit sore, therefore I don‘t press 'wall to wall'. Otherwise 30-35 pumps might be sufficient.

Anyone have advice in dealing with the VA in order to assist in the procedure?

thanks.

William8 wrote:Anyone have advice in dealing with the VA in order to assist in the procedure?

thanks.

MOST IMPORTANT!

Enlist the aid and support of your primary care physician.

Several years ago, I bit the bullet and admitted to my PCP that I had E.D. and he prescribed Sildenafil (Viagra), and when its effectiveness waned, the other oral medications in succession. After those lost effectiveness, I researched E.D. and available treatments. I discussed injections (which I did not want to do for a number of reasons) and urethral suppositories (also not a desirable option), V.E.D. and Constriction rings and he suggested that I was a good candidate for implant. He initiated a consultation with a local urologist. I researched for a bit more and selected a physician who did implants. AND who would make me an integral part of the decision-making.

Every step of the way, I ensured that I was fully informed on the medical issues and at least partially informed on the bureaucratic ones. I am certain my degree of self-education helped boost my PCP's support for and trust in me.

He remarked a couple of times that I knew more about E.D. than he did. (As an aside, this confidence in my self-education is carrying over onto issues with my thumb joints.)

I am a participatory patient. That is the way I am. There are people who prefer to let their medical care providers make all the decisions for them and I will not fault them for that, if they are more comfortable that way. That is the way they are. It is a matter of preference, choice and probably upbringing.

Lost Sheep wrote:

William8 wrote:Anyone have advice in dealing with the VA in order to assist in the procedure?

thanks.

MOST IMPORTANT!

Enlist the aid and support of your primary care physician.

Several years ago, I bit the bullet and admitted to my PCP that I had E.D. and he prescribed Sildenafil (Viagra), and when its effectiveness waned, the other oral medications in succession. After those lost effectiveness, I researched E.D. and available treatments. I discussed injections (which I did not want to do for a number of reasons) and urethral suppositories (also not a desirable option), V.E.D. and Constriction rings and he suggested that I was a good candidate for implant. He initiated a consultation with a local urologist. I researched for a bit more and selected a physician who did implants. AND who would make me an integral part of the decision-making.

Every step of the way, I ensured that I was fully informed on the medical issues and at least partially informed on the bureaucratic ones. I am certain my degree of self-education helped boost my PCP's support for and trust in me.

He remarked a couple of times that I knew more about E.D. than he did. (As an aside, this confidence in my self-education is carrying over onto issues with my thumb joints.)

I am a participatory patient. That is the way I am. There are people who prefer to let their medical care providers make all the decisions for them and I will not fault them for that, if they are more comfortable that way. That is the way they are. It is a matter of preference, choice and probably upbringing.

Thank you, Lost Sheep. I appreciate the input. Yes, "take the bull by the horns." I have seen many urologists but everyone states, "implants are a final option." They state that I am too young and still can get adequate erections and I should exhaust all other options. I have done exhaustive research on my particular issue which is different than most everyone else's. Urologists and physicians are perplexed. But even if I was able to have an agreeable physician, my insurance does not cover "sexual disfunctions." this is why I was interested in the VA route. Thanks again. I'll keep plugging along.