By Michael Tierra OMD, AHG founder
Peyronie’s disease is characterized by mild to severe curvature of the penis. It is estimate that approximately 1 to 2 men out of 100 are afflicted with this disease in North America with varying statistics in other regions of the world. The cause is not certain but it is believed to be the result of injury which in turn forms plaque or a hard lump on the penis thus it is also known as ‘Penile Nodulaton Syndrome.’ It begins with localized inflammation that can occur on any part of the penis where there is erectile tissue.
Symptoms may develop slowly or appear during the course of a day. In severe cases the hardened plaque can reduce flexibility and result in pain by forcing the penis to bend during an erection. Obviously this also makes sexual intercourse difficult, interfering with a couple’s physical and emotional relationship and causing a profound lack of self esteem in the man.
Peyronie’s can occur at any age. Hypertension and hypercholesterolemia can lead to a weakening of the vasculature of the penis and as a result susceptibility to injury during intercourse can in turn develop into Peyronie’s.
Peyronie’s is not dissimilar to Dupuytren’s contracture, which is a cord-like thickening across the palm of one or both hands causing the 4th and 5th fingers to contract towards the palm. This is fairly common in Caucasian men over the age of 50; however there is no corollary between individuals with Dupuytren’s and Peyronie’s.
François de la Peyronie, a French surgeon, first described Peyronie’s disease in 1743, though the problem was first described in print as early as 1687. Early medical texts commonly classified it as a form of impotence but in recent years it is commonly referred to as erectile dysfunction (ED). Actually while Peyronie’s is associated with ED, currently it is medically regarded as only one aspect of the disease since not all cases of ED are Peyronie’s.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) classifies it under the category of liver qi stagnation. This can in sequence because blood stagnation and finally transform into systemic phlegm stagnation characterized by lumps and nodules. Another category for some manifestations might be damp cold syndrome caused by spleen/kidney deficiency that descends to the penis where phlegm nodules are formed.
Treatments
1. Salvia Disperse Peyronie’s Nodule Decoction (Danshen Sanjie Tang) warms the kidneys, disperses cold, tonifies the spleen, transforms damp, moves blood and opens the collaterals: Salvia 12g, scrophularia 12, sinapis 10, dang gui 10, dioscorea 10, luffa fiber 10, citrus seed 10, raw Rehmannia 10, cooked Rehmannia 10, zedoaria 10 cinnamon bark 6, milletia 20, lonicera stem 30.
For advanced age, impotence, premature ejaculation, add dipsacus, loranthus, cornus, cibotium curculigo; for abdominal distention and persistent desire to urinate, add lindera, akebia and succinum; for diarrhea, aversion to cold, swollen tongue with tooth marks, add atractylodes and poria; for obvious swelling and pain in the penis, add corydalis and melia; for stubborn hardening that does not respond to treatment (usually with a purplish tongue), add sparganum, prunella, persica and carthamus.
90 cases reported, 15 cured, 34 markedly improved, 13 improved, 9 without results (for 19 cases no data was obtained), overall effectiveness was assessed at 69% (The Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine, May, 1985.
2. Formula for removing cold, blood and qi stagnation, and softening hardness.
Zedoary (E-Zhu) ‘“ pungent, bitter, warm enters liver and spleen channels, invigorates blood circulation, and removes stasis and pain, 9gm.
Brassica seed (Bai jie zi) ‘“ pungent, warm, enters the lung and stomach, resolves phlegm and lumps and circulates qi, 9gms (crushed)
Litchi seed (Li zhi he) -regulates qi, disperses qi and cold stagnation in the liver channel – 15g (crushed)
Vacaria seed (Wang bu liu xing) pungent, sweet, neutral enters liver and stomach, invigorates blood, 9gms (crushed)
Persica seed (Tao ren) ‘“ sweet, bitter, neutral, enters, lung, liver and large intestine channels, moves blood, 9 gms
Bombyx (Jiang Can) ‘“ pungent, salty, neutral- enters lung and liver channel, subdues internal wind (antispasmodic), relives pain and resolves phlegm and nodulation ‘“ 10gms
Spargani (San leng) is pungent, bitter, neutral/cold, enters the liver and spleen, relives blood stagnation, invigorates qi and relieves pain. 9gms
Angelica sinensis tails (Dang gui) is sweet, pungent and warm, enters the liver, heart and spleen channels, moves blood, and relieves pain, 9gms.
Salvia miltiorrhiza (Dang shen) is bitter, slightly cool, enters the heart and liver channels. It invigorates blood, removes stasis and relieves pain.
Sargassum (Hai zao) is bitter, salty and cold, enters the lung, spleen and kidney, it softens lumps and hardenings ‘“ 15gms
Pteropus (Wu ling zhi) is salty, bitter and warm, and enters the liver and spleen, it eliminates blood stagnation and relieves pain ‘“ 9gms
Cat-tail pollen (Pu huang) is sweet, neutral and enters the heart and liver. It invigorates blood circulation, relieves stasis and pain. ‘“ 9gms
Penis soaks
Make a decoction of lobelia, pteropus (Wu ling zhi), myrrh, frankincense, Brassica seed and prickly ash. Simmer one ounce in a pint of water 30 minutes, cool and strain. Wrap a cloth saturated with the tea around the penis twice daily for 30 minutes.
Following this one should directly apply an oil of vitamin E, castor and DMSO twice daily.
Supplements
Take Vitamin E and Nattokinase daily.