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I had my implant surgery with Dr. Andrew Kramer, Baltimore on Dec 3. Currently 1.5 days post surgery. Here is my experience with the procedure.

My case was a bit more complicated than I had expected; any of you who have had hernia repairs done on BOTH sides, beware: the placement of the reservoir could be tricky. Mine was (see YouTube video link in my signature). If you are also in this situation I think it’s a good idea to select one of top implant surgeons, someone who has seen it all and has a full bag of tricks.

I started my journey by sending Dr. Kramer a message from his website on a Friday night. He personally called my on Saturday (left a message) and we finally connected on Sunday. Thanks to all of you who have posted on this forum I had most of my questions ready and got them answered on the spot.

My surgery date was only two weeks away, so I had to scramble to get my pre-op exams scheduled and done. I had already talked to my health insurance company and had gotten written approval for the procedure.I was actually surprised at how easy this was; no red tape at all.

I live in the Midwest, so I flew in to Baltimore on Monday Dec 2, and had surgery the next day.

Dr. Kramer’s patients get discounts at several hotels in the area. I chose to stay at the Hilton. Good, but not great. If I fly back to see him post-op I will choose another hotel.

(Kramer’s clinic is an ambulatory surgery center; no patients stay in the clinic overnight. So I returned to the hotel right after a short time in the recovery room.)

After checking in to the clinic, I met with a nurse, then Dr. Kramer and then Dr. Tommy Nyguen, the anesthesiologist. Our conversation with both doctors was pleasant and unhurried. All of our questions were answered, and all of our concerns were heard. I told Kramer my penis measurements (16 cm to tip with erection), and he listened carefully to this important detail. We discussed the ins and out of the different implant options, and I decided on the AMS 700 LGX. I had a lot of questions about anesthesia, and Tommy sat down and listened carefully and gave us a detailed explanation of our options. Very impressed by both docs.

Surgery went well, with the reservoir placement being somewhat of a challenge because of my bilateral hernia repairs. I awoke from anesthesia feeling good—just a bit groggy. I asked for one pain pill for the road; I don’t think I needed it, and it made me groggy.

I wish the clinic could have had the post-op meds delivered to me at the clinic. On the way back to the hotel we stopped at a nearby pharmacy to pick up the prescription pain pills (which I did not need after all). I was sent home with a jock strap, some disposable ice packs, info from AMS, post-op instructions, and Kramer gave my partner his cell number. Bring a reusable ice pack or pick one up at the pharmacy on you way back to the hotel. At this point I think it’s becoming obvious that you will need a partner to help you on this journey.

Penis was inflated about 10% and wrapped in gauze. And a catheter and urine bag was attached. I used ice to reduce swelling. Also took 800 mg of Advil several times to prevent pain and to help reduce swelling. I removed the catheter the next morning. I have to say, to this point in my recovery the catheter caused the most discomfort. So happy to get that out!

When I got back to the hotel I had some questions about post-op care that I couldn’t remember. I texted Dr. Kramer and he quickly texted me back.

I know that some of you have a “What the fuck have I done” reaction when you take off the gauze wrapping and see your new bionic friend for the first time. Not me, thank goodness. All looked pretty good. Some swelling and bruising, but surprisingly little swelling and bruising.

I texted Dr. Kramer photos of my John Henry. He quickly texted me back with an “all looks good” text. Shortly after that a nurse from the clinic phoned to check up on me. Excellent after care, I must say. Later that afternoon Dr. Kramer himself called me to check up on me, and to arrange for him to visit me in my hotel before my departure on Friday afternoon.

Kramer has you lay flat on your back for the first couple days after surgery to reduce swelling. So be prepared; I read, watched TV, listened to music, and had my wonderful partner wait on me.

The first night after surgery I had no restrictions on what to eat. I was very hungry and ate too much. Restrain yourself—caused an upset stomach.

I will post photos of my “results” right after removing the gauze and the catheter the morning after.

Photos of the first morning after surgery

IT's great that everything is going well for you.

I am going to Baltimore on DEC 16th and surgery with Dr. Kramer on the 17th.

So right after you.

Hope you have continued good healing.

Awesome. Congrats. My experience was exactly the same, except I live in Baltimore, so didn't have the hotel experience and didn't see him until 4 weeks post-op. The catheter was the worst part of the whole experience. Ice! Ice! Ice!

Nice work! Nice pics too!
Glad he answered your questions at your pre-op because I watched his vids, and others, and have lots of questions on my phone I want to ask him as well as the anesthesiologist, but mostly him. I have surgery on the 10th with Kramer. Don't know what exactly to call my situation, as it is a correction from another Dr. from the 1st surgery. It is a replacement, going from AMS to Titan, but I never got to use the AMS, so unique situation.
I too, will bring my laptop with me, and hope to post right after surgery of my journey.
Since this is my 2nd go 'round, have asked my friend if he has frozen peas, brought all the underwear with hole to have dick out while cradling balls, snacks since I could not sit down at table to eat,
Now, just have to find a way to get rid of that fucking little Chihuahua that keeps jumping on me!

Day 2

48 hours post surgery. Swollen today. Maybe I should have been more aggressive with the ice yesterday. No problem with incision or any other aspects of the surgery. Very little pain. Getting by with 800 mg of Advil, although 400 mg might be enough. Laying flat on my back for most of the day again today. Using more ice today than yesterday.

Texted photos to Dr. Kramer. He quickly responded—-no worries, other than the swelling, looks pristine. Said he would stop by the hotel this evening or tomorrow morning.

My main complaint today is not the swelling; it’s constipation. I had read that that could be a problem. Take it seriously, guys. I texted Kramer about this. I suggested Colace (which he already prescribed after surgery in case it was needed), and he suggested dried fruit, and green, leafy vegetables. So I had a salad for lunch with my Colace.

48 hours post surgery

Day 3

72 hours post surgery. Some swelling and bruising. Major complaint: constipation. If I had no constipation I would be feeling great; eating green leafy vegetables to try to move things along; Colace doesn’t seem to help much. Very little pain; taking 400 mg of Advil every 4 hours for pain and to reduce inflammation. Minor complaint: it’s a little uncomfortable to sit for long periods of time because of the tenderness in my scrotum, as I found out on the plane ride home.

Dr. Kramer came to my hotel room today before we checked out to fly home. Making great progress. He thought the swelling was minimal, and that the bruising was as expected. (He used more stitches than usual because we would be traveling today. The incision is longer than usual because he also did a scrotoplasty.) He showed us how the pump was oriented in my scrotum, and showed us how to inflate and deflate. We inflated a few pumps and deflated a couple times (with no discomfort on my part, I was surprised). Pretty cool to see and feel John Henry get bigger as I pumped. I did get a little carried away with the pumping, and he had to tell me to stop. In a couple weeks I can start cycling; otherwise no more cycling until it heals more.

He told us to call or text him personally any time with questions or concerns. Also, he gave me the name of a local urologist who he trained that I could see.

He asked how he could make the experience better. I told him it would be nice if post-op meds could be delivered directly to the clinic, instead of the patient having to stop by a pharmacy on the way from the clinic to the hotel.

The hotel shuttle driver came up to the room and carried our luggage down to the shuttle and then on to the curb at the airport. Extra points to Hilton for that. Delta wheeled me in a wheel chair through security and to the boarding gate. Extra points to Delta for that. After sitting on the plane for a couple hours I was starting to feel uncomfortable. A bit tender down there. At our destination Delta wheeled me in a wheel chair to baggage claim, loaded up our bags for us, and wheeled us to a taxi cab. More points for Delta. The cab driver loaded our luggage into the van and then out of the van when we arrived home. Points for the taxi driver. Easiest navigation from hotel to airport to home I have ever had. Didn’t lift a finger. Points to my wonderful partner for arranging all of that.

You might want to try a fiber supplement like Metamucil. That along with Colace worked for me to overcome the constipation. I mixed it with OJ using the instruction on the side of the canister. Good luck!

Thanks! I wish I had known that a week ago.