FrankTalk.org

HI all

I am 28, almost 29. Have had pretty bad erectile dysfunction since 23 when my penis was injured during sex. Have considered an implant at some point in the future but from my research they only last 10 years if you use them 1-2 times a week (therefore if you want to use it a lot then it would possibly only last 4-5 years). Also each subsequent revision results in a much larger chance of infection - so if you need 2-3 implant replacements, all before you are 40 then essentially you are going to be dickless the rest of your life. Sounds bleak.

Suppose I have no choice but to wait it out for technology improvements. Open to any comments though from people with much more knowledge and experience than i.

There are guys that have implants for over 20 years. The technology is getting better as time goes by so you can't count on 4-5 revisions. Having said that I don't think there is a limit on revisions so you could essentially live a long sexual life. 28 is young but not too young. If you need an implant because you have ED and have tried everything else to no avail, then consider the implant. Most people are real happy with the results. I wish I did it before I was 48 because I suffered with ED since I was 21. Long story short don't discount getting the implant because of your age.

Some interesting points to consider. I have never read on FT a post from a member that regretted getting an implant at an early age. I have not read of a member claiming that they had run out of revisions.
I think that your fears are way overblown. If nothing works for you then it's time in my opinion.

I got mine a month ago at 24. Minimum age for the operation is 18 years old.

If you use it daily the estimated life expectancy is 3 to 5 years.

3 times a week it is 7 to 10 years

That s what I got told at my consultation. The risk for infection indeed increases with every revision and is higher for revisions (5-10%)

Meaning after 5 revisions you will have a chance of 50% of experiencing infection.

On the other hand, is having a sex life till 40 better than having one after 40. All in all it is a shitt situation.

I feel you.

mr.skin wrote:If you use it daily the estimated life expectancy is 3 to 5 years.

3 times a week it is 7 to 10 years

That s what I got told at my consultation. The risk for infection indeed increases with every revision and is higher for revisions (5-10%)

Meaning after 5 revisions you will have a chance of 50% of experiencing infection.

On the other hand, is having a sex life till 40 better than having one after 40. All in all it is a shitt situation.

I feel you.

I think that you are misusing the percentages. If the infection rate is 1% & the rate goes up 5%. You get 1.05%. It's not a flat 5%, rather 5% from where you started at.
There has been several members that have had at least 3 surgeries. I don't recall any of them mentioning that they got infected. Rather than the number of revisions. I think that the infection rate reflects the onset of type 2 diabetes. Higher than normal blood glucose levels are a known risk for infection in ANY implanted device. Very easily controlled if a guy cares to work at it.
3 a week eh. A guy that posted recently was having sex 12 out of the last 13 days. Are you implying that he just screwed a months worth of life out of his implant. I don't think so.
Are you getting that much sex now? Point is, many revisions are to replace the pump. Fairly small incision & a simple process. Don't sweat the small stuff.

mr.skin wrote:If you use it daily the estimated life expectancy is 3 to 5 years.

3 times a week it is 7 to 10 years

That s what I got told at my consultation. The risk for infection indeed increases with every revision and is higher for revisions (5-10%)

Meaning after 5 revisions you will have a chance of 50% of experiencing infection.

On the other hand, is having a sex life till 40 better than having one after 40. All in all it is a shitt situation.

I feel you.

Are you sure about that calculation?

Meaning after 5 revisions you will have a chance of 50% of experiencing infection.

First revision might indeed have a 5-10% chance (which I feel is pretty high estimate anyway), but jumping to the conclusion that a second revision has any greater chance than the first revision. Even if it his a higher risk, at some point the infection risk has got to level off.

I figure the skill of the surgeon is important, too.

On the other hand, if you are expecting to need a number of revisions, perhaps you should consider asking the surgeon to install a zipper.

My opinion: If you erection does not work (with any of the current technologies, Vacuum Device, pills, infections, suppositories, all of which do not give permanent damage to your erectile tissues) and you do not want to wait for medical science to produce a better non-surgical or surgical solution, then there is no reason to delay restoring your quality of life.

Gt1956 wrote:I think that you are misusing the percentages. If the infection rate is 1% & the rate goes up 5%. You get 1.05%. It's not a flat 5%, rather 5% from where you started at.
There has been several members that have had at least 3 surgeries. I don't recall any of them mentioning that they got infected. Rather than the number of revisions.
3 a week eh. A guy that posted recently was having sex 12 out of the last 13 days. Are you implying that he just screwed a months worth of life out of his implant. I don't think so.
Are you getting that much sex now? Point is, many revisions are to replace the pump. Fairly small incision & a simple process. Don't sweat the small stuff.

I got the numbers about the life expectancy from my phone consultation with dr. eid.

And no, I am certainly not miscalculating, the rate does not go up by 5 %, it goes up to 5 to 10 %. Which means if the infection rate is 1% it goes up by 500 to 1000%

Lost Sheep wrote:

Meaning after 5 revisions you will have a chance of 50% of experiencing infection.

First revision might indeed have a 5-10% chance (which I feel is pretty high estimate anyway), but jumping to the conclusion that a second revision has any greater chance than the first revision. Even if it his a higher risk, at some point the infection risk has got to level off.

I figure the skill of the surgeon is important, too.

On the other hand, if you are expecting to need a number of revisions, perhaps you should consider asking the surgeon to install a zipper.

My opinion: If you erection does not work (with any of the current technologies, Vacuum Device, pills, infections, suppositories, all of which do not give permanent damage to your erectile tissues) and you do not want to wait for medical science to produce a better non-surgical or surgical solution, then there is no reason to delay restoring your quality of life.

The calculation is correct, I estimate the infection risk to be independent and to stay the same for every revision, which means we have independent random variables which can be added up, meaning every revision the risk goes up 5-10%.

5 revisions means a total risk of 25-50% of ever experiencing an infection.

mr.skin wrote:The calculation is correct, I estimate the infection risk to be independent and to stay the same for every revision, which means we have independent random variables which can be added up, meaning every revision the risk goes up 5-10%.

5 revisions means a total risk of 25-50% of ever experiencing an infection.

My last observation on this subject in this thread is:

Statistics is a complex mathematical discipline. Applications of simple arithmetic is easily misconstrued.

No disrespect intended, mr.skin, just a caution to readers who might overestimate (or underestimate) risks and results.

I kinda think the infection rate with any revision is 5-10% and doesn't get added each time.

If you flip a coin the chance is 50% it'll come up heads.
If you flip it 9 times and it comes up heads.
The 10th flip will have a 50% chance of being heads.