Purpose: The current study assessed the surgical outcomes of the semirigid implant and their impact on the patient's and the partner's satisfaction. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to highlight the essential role of both radial and axial rigidities in patients' and partners' satisfaction.
Patients and methods: The study included 32 patients and their partners. Their penile duplexes and Rigiscan proved the diagnosis. Subcoronal approach was adopted to insert the implant. Structured interview was carried out to evaluate the surgical outcomes using a 10-question questionnaire to evaluate the patients' and their partners' satisfaction rate prospectively, at 1, 3, and 6 months, respectively. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient or Spearman's ρ was used.
Results: In our patients, we found moderate satisfaction rates for the majority of both patients and their partners. The current study revealed that the majority of the study patients were complaining of poor radial rigidity and dropped penis, which had an adverse impact on the overall satisfaction of the patient. A significant relationship was revealed between reimplantation and poor radial rigidity. Age demonstrated a significant correlation with poor circumferential rigidity and dropped penis. As regards the female partners, they showed a significant positive correlation between their negative responses and poor radial rigidity.
Conclusion: This study highlighted the adverse impact of poor radial rigidity on patient satisfaction rate, which can be avoided with proper surgical technique. In addition, proper counseling is essential, especially for older patients, about the possibility of poor radial rigidity and dropped penis as they may push them to remove the implant.