As a student in a biology class where the topic of reproduction is being discussed, you can tell that it is often one of the most energetic classes because both the student and the teacher or lecturer as you may are excited to discuss it at least until the teacher starts to mention different biological jargon on the topic of discuss then you would see a change in the atmosphere.
In all, another exciting part of the class is the question session and this is because we are able to ask questions we are need clarity on. So today, I will be the student and the teacher and I will be asking just one question in the post and I will be giving the answer in the simplest way possible. So the question is, Can a man fracture his penis?
The simple and straight answer you can get is yes, one can have a fracture of the penis, what we refer to as penile fracture. To understand a penile fracture, the anatomy of the penis needs to be explained quickly. First, there are no bones in the penis so when we use the word fracture, we aren't referring to bones so what breaks in the penis?
The penis is made up of two erectile tissue bodies called the Corpora Cavernosa which is found on the dorsal region or top of the penis, In the Corpora Cavernosa are arteries known as Cavernous arteries, Helicine arteries, Emissary arteries and dorsal arteries. The Corpora Cavernosa is filled with blood during erection which is when it is hard. At the ventral or lower part of the penis is a less vascular, more spongy cylindrical erectile tissue known as the Corpus Spongiosum which also houses the Urethra (The urethra is the passage for seminal fluid and urine).
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Surrounding the erectile tissue masses is the tunica albuginea which is the white looking connective tissue surrounding the erectile tissue masses. In the penis's flaccid state, the Tunica Albuginea has no tension on it which is while when the penis is flaccid, it can move in almost all directions that you can think of without pain but when blood starts to fill the erectile tissues, then the Tunica Albuginea begin to stretch and get tight stopping further expansion of the penis, maintaining the structure and shape of the penis.
A penile fracture occurs when the penis is erect, and this can often happen when it hits a wrong place which can be an stationary object, or in cases where another part of the body that isn't suppose to receive the penis receives it especially in the case of vigorous sexual intercourse, or cases where there is a blunt trauma on an already erect penis such as a kick or a hard hit on it leading to a forceful bending of the penis.
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A person who has a penile fracture would hear a popping or cracking sound from the penis, which would be followed by severe and intense pain. As you would have thought, there will be a quick loss of erection which would be accompanied by swelling, as well as bruising of the penis. It can lead to a bending or deformity in the structure of the penis which when not treated can lead to complications such as erectile dysfunction, permanent penile curvature thereby giving the penis a bent shape permanently, and it would cause pain during erection.
Before you start to use pain relief to fight what is not, Penile fracture is usually treated using surgery where the tunica Albuginea is repaired, and in cases where the fracture damages the urethra, then it needs to be repaired so as to be able to allow for fluid to pass through. Penile fracture can be treated with non-surgical procedures but it is less preferred and highly advised against since there are higher risk of complications and permanent damages.
Thankfully, penile fracture isn't common since it is usually a result of an accident but it is important to be careful when participating in Coitus especially vigorous ones.
Reference
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK551618/
https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/456305-overview?form=fpf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1472832/
https://healthymale.org.au/mens-health/penis-fracture
https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1949325-overview?form=fpf
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK482236/
