Summary Statistics
- N: 76/154 with documented dates
- Median: 3 years
- Mean: 4 years
- Max: 10 years
Percent Distribution
Code: Select all
≤1 yr — 40%
1–4 yrs — 18%
5–10 yrs — 40% (Similar to Titan)
Source: FDA MAUDE Database
Disclaimer: These are failure stats and not survival probability. Not professionally peer-reviewed and can have errors.
Summary of Events
1. INFECTION
- Infection is a recurring reason for explant — commonly scrotal infections with purulence, swelling, redness, pain, and pus.
- In many infection cases a temporary Tactra or malleable spacer was placed to preserve corporal space until the infection cleared.
- Infection types included recurrent UTIs, incision-site infections, bacterial/Staphylococcus infections, and chronic urethral-mucosa infection causing extrusion; some required full washout with antibiotics.
- Infection sometimes coexisted with other complications (e.g., a herniated and infected reservoir with inguinal abscess; post-implant pain later found to be scrotal infection). Classified as a known inherent risk per the IFU.
2. MALFUNCTION
- Fluid loss/leakage was the most common malfunction — holes, tears, pinholes, and peeling cylinder coating.
- Tubing failures — broken, kinked, cracked, or disconnected tubing, including a cluster of "crack in pump/cylinder connecting tube."
- Pump failures — won't inflate/deflate, sticky or dimpled pumps, micropunctures, faulty lock-out valves, and failed activation testing.
- Inflation/deflation problems — incomplete inflation, spontaneous/auto-deflation during intercourse, inflate-then-deflate; some no-leak cases were attributed to corporal stretch or scar capsule.
- Cylinder structural failures — bulges, aneurysmal change, buckling, layer dissociation, and fabric ingrowth.
- Lab analyses found wear at folds and kink-resistant tubing worn to filament; many holes were attributed to sharp-instrument damage during explant rather than a manufacturing defect.
- Reservoir malfunctions — empty reservoirs, tubing holes, and need for refill.
3. MALPOSITION
- Reservoir herniation — reservoir migrated out of the space of Retzius into the scrotum, groin, inguinal area, bladder, or ureter, causing pain.
- Pump migration — pump rotated, pulled up, or positioned too low or too deep posteriorly.
- Gland hypermobility ("floppy glans") — only the glans engorges while the shaft stays flaccid; some loss of glans sensation reported.
- Erosion / impending erosion — cylinders or pump eroding through the urethra or scrotum, including urethral extrusion.
- Crossover — distal or proximal crossover; sometimes attributed to original surgical misplacement (unintended use error).
- Cylinder migration — e.g., right cylinder migrating into the scrotum; cylinders folding over.
- Aneurysms — cylinder aneurysmal change (often left-sided) with bulging and loss of axial rigidity; some required planned corpora cavernosa reconstruction.
4. PATIENT DISSATISFACTION
- Size & rigidity — device too long/too large, sizing/measurement errors of roughly 3–4 cm, inadequate rigidity, Tenacio pump perceived as "too hard" or not fully inflating, and erections not staying stiff; often resolved by swapping a Tenacio pump for an MS pump.
- Cosmetic / placement concerns — pump placement or discomfort too low, reservoir bulge, cylinder herniation with dissatisfaction, and difficulty pumping/inflating.
