Does a replacement or revision of an inflatable penile prosthesis lead to decreased patient satisfaction?

To analyze the reason for replacement, revision and overall satisfaction of a cohort who underwent surgical replacement of an inflatable penile prosthesis (IPP). A cohort of 105 patients who underwent IPP replacement from 2005–2007 was retrieved from the prosthesis database. Approximately 21.9% (23) underwent replacement or revision of their prosthesis because of complications, and were further analyzed. Reason for removal was stratified into infectious and non-infectious (erosion, non-function and patient discomfort). Age, race (African American vs non-African American), smoking history, hypertension, diabetes, coronary artery disease and hyperlipidemia were stratified by reason for removal. Finally, we contacted patients and recorded subjective satisfaction with their IPP. The reason for removal was most commonly because of a non-functional IPP (47.8%), followed by infection (30.4%), erosion (17.4%) and patient discomfort (4.3%). Age and race did not show a significant difference when analyzing reason for replacement (P>0.05). Patients who were smokers (P=0.907) had hypertension (P=0.554), diabetes (P=0.591) or hyperlipidemia (P=0.219) did not have significantly higher infection rates. Approximately 58.3% were satisfied with their prosthesis, 75% would have the surgery performed again and 91.7% would still recommend prosthesis surgery. Device malfunction was the primary reason for replacement/removal at our institution. Despite the complications of prosthesis reoperation, the majority of patients were still satisfied with their prosthesis, would have the surgery performed again and would recommend prosthesis surgery to a friend.