What Is a Penile Fracture?

Penile fracture refers to the rupture of the white membrane of the corpus cavernosum of the penis under external violent conditions when the penis is erect. The normal thickness of the white membrane of the cavernous body of the penis is about 2 mm. When the penis is erect, the vascular sinuses are congested, the internal pressure is increased, and the white membrane is only 0.2 to 0.25 mm thin, which is prone to rupture. The breach is often horizontal, and generally does not exceed 1/2 of the perimeter of the cavernous body, and most are located far away from the 1/3. This kind of injury is relatively rare, because there are hidden reasons, so many cases have not been reported.

Basic Information

English name

fracture of penis

Visiting department

Urology

Multiple groups

male

Common causes

When an penis is erected, sexual intercourse or masturbation can break the penis

Common symptoms

Acute pain, the penis becomes soft, swollen, and deformed

Causes of penile fracture

Penile fracture often occurs during penile erections. For example, sexual intercourse caused the penis to hit the woman's pubic symphysis or perineum, or masturbate to break the penis and cause injuries. According to domestic statistics, these two reasons are 45% and 38%, respectively. About 10% of the erect penis squeezed and broken on the bed, the other 7% belonged to others.

In the erect state, the penis is ruptured by direct external force. The white membrane is one of the tough fascia in the body, but the blood flow of the cavernous body increases 7 to 8 times during the erect state of the penis, which makes the white membrane stretch thinner (1/8 to 1/4 when it is not erect) and loses its elasticity. Susceptible to vertical external force, even slight external force can cause rupture of white membrane and sponge.

Clinical manifestations of penile fracture

Patients usually report that during sexual intercourse, the penis is distorted, there is a sound when broken, with severe pain, and then the penis is erect and subsides. The penis becomes soft, swollen, bent and deformed, and is biased towards the healthy side. Due to the corpus cavernosum rupture and bleeding, hematoma ecchymosis was formed, and the skin of the penis was blue-purple. Urination is usually normal.

1. History of local penile injury.

2. Local penis pain after injury, congestion, bleeding, swelling can be seen.

3. Penile fracture often occurs in an erect state, and there are often sounds and severe pain at the moment of injury. At this time, the erect penis is also soft.

Penile fracture check

For a few patients with insignificant symptoms, diagnosis must be confirmed by cavernous angiography or ultrasound and magnetic resonance (MRI) examination. In diagnosis, it is necessary to distinguish whether one or both cavernous bodies are ruptured, whether there is urethral injury, whether it is simple skin injury, vascular injury, penile transposition and so on.

Penile fracture complications

Complications of conservative treatment of penile fracture are as high as 30% -44%, including missed diagnosis of urethral injury, persistent hematoma, secondary infection, penile fibrosis and angulation deformity, painful nodules, and sexual dysfunction caused by it. Patients treated with surgery had no such complications.

Penile fracture treatment

Non-surgical treatment

Treatment measures include sedation, indwelling urinary catheters, penile compression bandaging, local cold compresses, and hot compresses after 24 hours, and oral estrogen, intravenous antibiotic treatment, non-surgical treatment of penile swelling and slow regression, and local scarring. Induration and penile erection and painful erection and other complications.

2. Surgical treatment

Rupture of the cavernous body of the penis should generally be treated as soon as possible to avoid complications. Treatment measures: clear the hematoma, suture the ruptured white membrane with silk thread, stop bleeding by surgery, generally the penile swelling subsides within 10 days after surgery, and sexual function recovers well after surgery.