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Here at PeyroniesAssociation.org we feel that you should stay informed. Below are some clinical trials and treatment options.
Other Non-Surgical Treatments for Peyronie's disease
By, Dr. Wayne J.G. Hellstrom, MD. FACS
Despite various surgical and nonsurgical treatment approaches, Peyronie’s disease (PD) remains a therapeutic dilemma for practicing urologists. François Gigot de la Peyronie, who the condition is named after, in 1743 advocated the use of spa-specific (Bareges) mineral water and mercurial ointments. Later in the 19th century, arsenic, iodine, sulfur, bromides, and camphor were used for treatment. Virtually all the early published studies on these kinds of medical therapies were empirical and based on anecdotal reports. Various energy transfer methods have also been used to treat PD, including orthovoltage radiation therapy, electricity, UV light, radium, ultrasound, short-wave diathermy, and laser therapy.
Fricke and Varney (1948) used radium therapy on 112 patients who had PD for a 6-year period and reported no improvement in approximately half of the cases. When combined with tocopherol, Burford (1957) reported an 84% improvement or cure, while noting a 77% improvement with radium alone. However, as the dangers of radium became better known, the treatment with radium fell into disfavor and was no longer employed.
Historically, external beam radiotherapy had been used to treat PD. A study by Halvie and Oschner (1972) applied a total of 900 to 1,000 rads of radiation therapy in 40 PD cases and reported pain relief in 72%, decreased curvature in 29%, and reduction in plaque size in 35% of cases. A similar study by Bystrom et al (1972) reported less successful results in 19 cases with a mean dose of 1,200 rads. Martin published his results using irradiation 37 years after its application in a number of PD patients. After evaluation of 77 out of 142 cases via telephone interview or mail correspondence, the author reported a 33.8% cure rate. A publication by Carson (1985) suggested that external beam radiotherapy had only a limited application for pain relief in PD men. A more recent study by Rodrigues (1995) et al confirmed this conclusion. Irradiation is recognized to cause microangiopathic changes of the cavernosal tissues of the penis, with the progressive onset of erectile dysfunction. Because of the recognized fibrotic effect, this modality is no longer recommended for the treatment of PD.
In 1967, Heslop and colleagues first reported the use of ultrasound for treatment of PD. The mechanism involves a selective heating between the tissue intersurfaces of different physical properties where sound waves are directed. This local heat in theory increased blood flow and decreases fibroblast formation. A study by Frank and Scott (1971) noted subjective improvements in patients when followed for 2 months to 11 years. Other researchers have combined ultrasound with hydrocortisone.
Despite the fact that some studies using modalities reported benefit, the majority have not found wide acceptance in the United States and are not recommended by most authorities in sexual medicine. Some of these treatments are administered over long durations and for that reason are not easily deciphered from the natural resolution of this disease. Overall, the low numbers of participants, limited follow-up time, and lack of evidenced-based design have made these reported results unreliable and non-reproducible in subsequent studies. |
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