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A 44-year-old man’s extreme efforts to maintain an erection landed him on the operating table where firefighters and surgeons with circular saws attempted to save his penis.
The unnamed Australian had slipped nine heavy duty stainless steel metal rings around his penis and scrotum while drunk and fell asleep after having sex before removing the rings.
He woke up three hours later in terrible pain with a swollen penis and scrotum, according to a report published in the Urology Case Reports Journal.
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“On presentation to the emergency department, he was in considerable pain and distress requiring intravenous opioid pain relief,” the journal reports.
The metal rings were roughly one centimetre in diameter, and were lodged around his penis and scrotum.
He could still feel some sensation.
Doctors at Gold Coast University Hospital in Queensland initially tried to remove the rings using ring cutters and bolt cutters, but failed.
“Failing these attempts, help from the local fire brigade service was required to obtain an adequate power tool able to cut through the stainless-steel rings. An industrial style electric circular saw was found which was known to be able to cut stainless steel,” the journal reports.
“Under general anaesthesia in the operating theatre, the circular saw was utilised. The underlying tissues were protected using a tongue depressor and gauze. To avoid thermal injuries to the underlying tissues, cool sterile saline was run over the rings while cutting took place.”
After the successful surgery, doctors performed a cystoscopy, a procedure to examine his bladder by inserting a thin scope. They discovered his urethra was irritated and inserted a catheter, which he had to wear for seven days.
“The patient did not require further surgery to the penis and reported mild erectile dysfunction in the outpatient clinic two months following.”
Last year, a man in Thailand had to get the fire brigade to remove a ring from his penis using power tools.
Unlike the Aussie, the 35-year-old had the ring on for four months and was at risk of his penis becoming infected or having to be amputated, if it had been left on longer, due to reduced blood circulation.
“The device was carefully removed because if we did it wrong, it could cut and injure him. The whole process took more than one hour,” said Somchai Chokchai, who was on the rescue team.
Putting a ring on a penis for sexual pleasure is not uncommon, but these rings are usually made of plastic, rubber or silicone, for easy removal.
According to Men's Health magazine, a penis ring will “not only make your erection bigger and harder, it can also help you last longer during sex and even help your partner reach orgasm”.
SOURCES: DAILYMAIL.COM, SCIENCEDIRECT.COM, TIMESNOWNEWS.COM, MENSHEALTH.COM
