Current use of penile implants in erectile dysfunction.

Penile implants became popular with the introduction of effective models more than 30 years ago. Today they play a secondary but definitive role in the treatment of erectile dysfunction at times when more conservative therapies have failed. Improvements in reducing the incidence of infection, treating infection with antiseptic washes, enhancing device longevity, and instituting new techniques to manage complicated implantation procedures have made them more acceptable to patients. Although penile implants are the least often chosen and most invasive treatment for erectile dysfunction, they have the highest satisfaction rate--in the range of 80% to 90%--among both patients and partners.