FrankTalk.org

My account has finally been reset and I can now respond again.
Thank the many of you for your concerns.
11/13/16 will mark 10 months post surgery.
I have had many months ( though little time) to reflect on what is right and what is wrong with my implant and what can be done to maximize better results for everyone.
I've analyzed, researched when I could, dissected thoughts and put them together again in different scenarios.
I will try in the next few weeks to post my thoughts as well as progress or lack thereof reports on my implant.
A little here:
Would I do it again? Not if were to have the same outcome.
What do I like? Flaccid is as near natural as you can get.
Would I allow infrapubic again? NEVER! I still think that is the basis of most of my issues.
What are my biggest issues? Rt side inflates more than left. Bent dick.
Glans never gets bigger. Trimix gel did not work
Lump at base of penis on top gets sore.
Wad of tubing in pubic area is an issue.
Still no feeling in penis. Numb
Penis still smaller in girth and length. Wife says there
is no satisfaction from it anymore and wishes I
never had an implant. Better before the rare
times it worked.
End half of glans still will fold over
What has improved? October 5th, for some reason, when I was pumping it
up, the pump dropped lower and has remained lower
something popped inside and then it dropped.

The tissue between the pump and rt nut has loosened
up and does not pull on the nut till it hurts. Slipped
down more wrapped around the bottom of pump and
tubing now.

The "coils" of tubing in the pubic area above the penis
have straightened out and now not as much of
an issue as they had in the past. Still sticks out in the pubic area when pumped up where it is easy to see and feel.

Penis is not as tapered, more uniform end to end but flat.
What seems odd? When flacid I can squeeze penis from the tip and
slide the implant down my penis inside. I think
this is likely normal as it is sliding in the
capsule of scar tissue surrounding it. 2-3 pumps
and it will pop back up the the glans area.
Other changes? Used to take 30 pumps to hard, then 40, now I can
go 65, then the pump bulb gets squishy.
Erect is now closer to 2:30 position and after
15 minutes or so droops more toward 4:00. Very little effort will bend it to 6 o'clock now.
Erect used to be stiff enough to hold a towel.
Not now. Erect will bend side to side, up, down
Modeling helped SLIGHTLY. Wearing the largest
dick pouch briefs I can find leaves a severe 90 degree
left bend that takes days of modeling to get to
a lesser bend. I now were no underwear with at all
with loose pants and let it all hang, then I don't have that issue. Boxers slightly helped but had the same issue.
NEVER EVER SETTLE FOR MEDIOCRITY. When compared to the highest standards of implant quality, I would say the majority has settled for less. Shorter, soft glans, or some issue that is sub par. Set your standards high and let your doctor know it. Lowering your standards to less than the best is the same as giving your APPROVAL for the doctor to do less than the best. Would you accept a Chinese knockoff implant? Why accept knock-off level surgery then? I know I will catch hell from some again over this but look at your dick. Is it the best you ever had, or have you settled for less just because you can make it hard?
Cheers and all the best to everyone.

Dude,
So glad to hear things are better for you. Is sex better also? I hope so. It's the reason I got my implant. .
Rev. Donnie

Alibaba,

I am so sorry to hear this story. I can't help but believe that this is not typical for most people and I am saddened that you have to endure this. I have heard from more than one source to stay away from Milam and that is surprising considering I believe he is part of Vanderbilt. I went to the Vanderbilt voice center for vocal help that ultimately ended in getting vocal implants and my doctor was top in her field. The surgery team did a good job.

Have you considered getting a revision and going to a different surgeon, one that does a lot of revisions? If you have insurance, I would think it should cover it.

Wishing you the best, man. I know it has to be tough.

I've considered Eid. Insurance will not pay him. Kramer agreed to do it but there is a dispute between University of Maryland Health Center and United Healthcare and they cannot accept this insurance any more so that leaves self pay both places. Both doctors expressed they would not have done my implant this way and it needs revision to correct the many issues. I've not had time to look into other doctors. Lately, considering the crappy outcome many who have contacted me have also had, I am even considering doing nothing and chalking it up as a wasted adventure. The annoying tubing is what keeps a revision in the back of my mind. I am not sure all the issues caused by this disaster can be fixed. Eid expressed that he thought the lost length was gone for good. Kramer thought he could get 1-2cm in length back. 1 centimeter is about 3/8ths of an inch. Length after 9 months of extreme pumping 3 times a day for up to an hour is 5 3/4". Still short of 7 1/4 pre surgery.

ddBryan1972, We do not attempt sex any more. It does not fill up my wife like it used to and she gets none of the enjoyment she used to. On my side of the coin it is numb. No feeling in the shaft or glans that never engorges. I can pinch it and feel nothing. There is nothing to be had by having sex with this disaster. It will pump up hard enough to stick it in a hole. That is the ONLY thing this implant accomplished. The 2 doctors that I have had in office visits with seemed more interested in replacing the implant or splicing tubing and re-routing it than figuring out if there is nerve damage that causes the lack of feeling. One told me to see Eid or another doctor as the mess was beyond his skill to repair. The other doctor told me to try to live with it and see if I "could get used to it enough to accept things the way they are before considering a revision" though he said "considering my body, he never would have put in the implant the way Milam did".

You know what I'd do. I consult with Kramer to see who he recommends. He does so many out of town jobs that he offers his patients two options for activation: 1. Skype or 2. His preferred method is to set you up with someone in your area that he trusts.

He even made the contact and got me accepted to Dr. Knoll in Nashville. He said Dr. Knoll has done more implants than he had because Knoll is older. He said Knoll really knows what he's doing and he would be seeing him at some upcoming convention soon.

My point is this. Kramer is a great guy who really cares a lot. Even though you can't be his patient, he would probably be able to recommend a good doctor in your area which would likely be covered by your insurance. You might do like I did and go online to search for "in network" urologists. That way you'd have a list to Email Dr. Kramer and he could then advise you.

Just a thought. Good luck. I feel bad for your situation.

jonbaldbg, thank you for the suggestion. I had not thought of going that route. Boston Scientific/AMS referred me to Knoll stating they send everyone to him for revisions but I found his office evasive on the phone and they said he would only do infrapubic which seems to be the basis for many if not all my issues with this implant. For that reason and the horrid experience with medical care in general in Nashville, I would not consider him. I may email Kramer and ask for a suggestion. At one time we kicked around an implant at some location he might be training but that is difficult to schedule and find out if insurance will pay at whatever location. BS/AMS rep said in training the teaching doctor coaches but does not to the work.

Best of luck alibaba. Vandy is a training hospital. I have vocal cord implants done there and was surrounded by a team. Frankly, I don't know if my surgeon did the actual implant or not, but I think she did. In that procedure, I was awake 3 1/2 hours while they drilled into my neck and fabricated implants and then installed them. There was a scope going down my nose, hanging over my head the whole time. What a trip.

I hope things work out for you. I guess I don't have to worry about Knoll's infra pubic since he's only doing my activation. I can't fathom wanting infra pubic either, but I know there are some good doctors out there that do it that way. Seems there are quite a few different ways to approach this surgery by different doctors around the world.

jonbaldbg , glad your vocal implants went well. I too have laryngeal implants. Dr. Nussenbaum at Washington University school of medicine in St. Louis was my doctor. After many failures of hyureic gel he suggested Montgomery silicone implants saying he could remove them and change sizes if I ever needed. Said never to the Gortex. I was semi awake during the surgery too to speak as you know. Peed on the operating table there so long with the I.V.'s running and no cath. Woke up and found out a student did it with Gortex. Asked why and he said because it was faster. 2 months later the hospital calls about my next surgery. I knew nothing of it. Nussenbaum scheduled me for the gel again stating the gortex was sub optimal. I told him no. It was supposed to last 2 years and would last me 3 weeks. 5 tries were enough. Saw another surgeon and he called Gore in Texas who informed him it was impossible to remove the gortex w/o destroying the vocal cords so I could not have a revision to another size implant. Glad they did yours right! As long as I do not get tired and keep my T levels high thus muscles strong, I do not choke and can talk. At the end of a stressful day I cannot talk at all. Failure of the hyaureaic acid gel is why I do not think annual injections in the glans at $1000 a pop will be a good option either, nor the gortex which will make it hard as a rock over time. Who wants a rock hard glans? Be well sir. Hope your activation goes well!

I have been told by 4 supposedly top implant surgeons ( who really knows who is the top?) that infrapubic should only be used on diabetics with high infection risk and poor control of their diabetes, Quite elderly, and obese patients but some doctors have adopted it for young thin healthy patients for easier reservoir implantation and less risk if infection. All the doctors who told me this say the infection risk is no higher scrotal with proper care and prep. Every doc that has seen mine and has my health history says I should never have had pubic.

alibaba wrote:jonbaldbg , glad your vocal implants went well. I too have laryngeal implants. Dr. Nussenbaum at Washington University school of medicine in St. Louis was my doctor. After many failures of hyureic gel he suggested Montgomery silicone implants saying he could remove them and change sizes if I ever needed. Said never to the Gortex. I was semi awake during the surgery too to speak as you know. Peed on the operating table there so long with the I.V.'s running and no cath. Woke up and found out a student did it with Gortex. Asked why and he said because it was faster. 2 months later the hospital calls about my next surgery. I knew nothing of it. Nussenbaum scheduled me for the gel again stating the gortex was sub optimal. I told him no. It was supposed to last 2 years and would last me 3 weeks. 5 tries were enough. Saw another surgeon and he called Gore in Texas who informed him it was impossible to remove the gortex w/o destroying the vocal cords so I could not have a revision to another size implant. Glad they did yours right! As long as I do not get tired and keep my T levels high thus muscles strong, I do not choke and can talk. At the end of a stressful day I cannot talk at all. Failure of the hyaureaic acid gel is why I do not think annual injections in the glans at $1000 a pop will be a good option either, nor the gortex which will make it hard as a rock over time. Who wants a rock hard glans? Be well sir. Hope your activation goes well!

Alibaba,
I'm not sure what material they used for my vocal implants. Dr. Garrett (Vanderbilt) simply told me that they make the implants in the operating room at the time of my surgery. I can no longer sing. I can usually talk, although sometimes I sound a little raspy. I can't yell, cheer or address a large room of people. No talking in a noisy crowd for me.

But I am grateful to at least be able to talk again. I am so sorry about all your troubles and hope you can get a resolution.