PMMA ( polymethyl-methacrylate ) for girth enhancement. Is it safe?
Saturday, May 5th, 2012May 5, 2012
I’m looking to add girth to my penis. I’m currently making plans to go for PMMA. Im just not sure PMMA is safe? Why would you reccommend your procedure over PMMA?
Stan
May 5, 2012
Good morning Stan,
In medical school and residency there are many sayings you acquire that forms a basis of instruction and guidance on how to practice medicine. One is “don’t be the first of the last doctor to try something new.”
PMMA is FDA approved for use in the hip joint to fasten a hip prosthesis to the bone (like Duco Cement, if you will). It does not have specific FDA approval to be used as micro particles in the penis, as far as I know, but the application can be extended. So this makes it very experimental. It is an FDA approved filler and sold as Artefill.
Could be the greatest thing since sliced bread, but as a rule US doctors may be more cautious, for medical legal reasons. I had been receiving about one letter about every 3 weeks from gents like you, and could only say what I mentioned above, until in the past 2 months, we have had 2 patients say, all did not go well, and one patient’s chart about 1 and 1/2 inch thick, copies of records form another doctor are on my credenza top for review this weekend (what went wrong?).
I do have a lot of confidence in AlloDerm. Any injectable product (see silicone disasters on our web-site) has the propensity for settling in planes of least tissue resistance. Despite manual molding in the operating room. What happens when you turn your back on the patient for the next 24 hours is key. So I would not be cautiously optimistic about PMMA, just plain super cautious (read wary).
Sincerely and have a restful weekend,
Harold M. Reed, M.D.
305-865-2000
More on PMMA…. (from another web-site)
PMMA (polymethyl-methacrylate) fillers contain about 20 percent of tiny PMMA microspheres that are suspended in 80 percent of purified collagen gel. A few months after it is injected, the collagen gel breaks down and your body produces its own natural collagen to fill out the space under the skin.
This type of dermal filler is considered semi-permanent, and is most often used to treat medium-to-deep wrinkles, folds and furrows, particularly nasolabial folds. It can also be used to fill out pitted scars and to augment thin lips.
When a more permanent solution to facial wrinkles is desired, PMMA is often used instead of collagen replacement therapy or hyaluronic therapy. PMMA has been used for many years in permanent surgical implants. Because of this, your surgeon will likely under-fill on the first treatment, adding more later if needed.
One of the downsides of PMMA is that a number of injections are needed to create volume and it can take up to three months to realize the full effects. It may also be visible under the skin. To avoid any unwanted results, it’s key that your plastic surgeon is familiar with the proper technique, which involves injection at the dermal subcutaneous junction using threading or tunneling methods.
PMMA, properly delivered, offers long-lasting results.
The only brand of PMMA that’s FDA approved is Artefill.
PMMA injections are sometimes performed with no medical oversight, often in conjunction with facial spa treatments. You can avoid any risks or complications and achieve optimal results by visiting a qualified plastic surgeon. Although the surgeon may not perform the procedure, you can rest assured that the surgeon’s employees are properly trained and supervised.