American scientists have managed to restore the erectile capacity of the penis in rats using adult stem cells from the intestine . The advance heralds a new method for penile reconstruction in humans.
Men with penile defects or injuries, or patients with Peyronie's disease, which causes deviation and pain in this organ during erection, sometimes resort to surgery to reconstruct their genitals. In many cases the organ is rebuilt with its own tissue or from pig corpses or intestines, although it can cause complications. The urologist Wayne Hellstrom, from the Tulane University School of Medicine (USA), has found an alternative, according to the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , adding stem cells to the grafted tissues.
The technique improves blood flow and the production of molecules such as nitric oxide that achieve and maintain an erection, which improves the sexual life of patients compared to other grafts. In addition, researchers have observed an increase in the average girth of the penis, both in flaccid and erect states.
