Vineet Agrawal1, David Ralph. 1. St. Peter's Department of Andrology, Institute of Urology, London, UK. agrawalvineet@hotmail.com
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess whether the outcome of implanting penile prostheses is related to the number of prostheses implanted by surgeons, as several reports showed that the outcome of a urological procedure is directly related to the experience of the surgeon. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective audit of 413 penile prostheses implanted over a 2-year period in the UK by 76 surgeons. RESULTS: About 80% of the surgeons implanted only one or two prostheses per year, usually of the malleable type, and usually on patients in the private sector. Only four surgeons implanted >20 prostheses per year. The overall revision rate for implantation in the UK, at 24%, is far higher than the worldwide average. CONCLUSIONS: Guidelines are needed on the number of prostheses a surgeon should implant per year so that revision rates will decline to more acceptable levels and patients will be offered a genuine choice of product.
OBJECTIVE: To assess whether the outcome of implanting penile prostheses is related to the number of prostheses implanted by surgeons, as several reports showed that the outcome of a urological procedure is directly related to the experience of the surgeon. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective audit of 413 penile prostheses implanted over a 2-year period in the UK by 76 surgeons. RESULTS: About 80% of the surgeons implanted only one or two prostheses per year, usually of the malleable type, and usually on patients in the private sector. Only four surgeons implanted >20 prostheses per year. The overall revision rate for implantation in the UK, at 24%, is far higher than the worldwide average. CONCLUSIONS: Guidelines are needed on the number of prostheses a surgeon should implant per year so that revision rates will decline to more acceptable levels and patients will be offered a genuine choice of product.