Since the introduction of Restylane, the first FDA-approved hyaluronic acid (HA) injectable filler, into the U.S. cosmetic medical market in 2004, physicians and scientists have discovered a multitude of uses for HA fillers far beyond their original indication for correction of facial wrinkles and folds.
Today, products from the Restylane and Juvederm families of HA fillers are used in cosmetic medicine for everything from wrinkle treatment, lip augmentation, chin and cheek augmentation, hand rejuvenation and non-surgical nose jobs.
But researchers’ experimentation with HA fillers has not stopped at anti-aging treatment and skin rejuvenation. Most recently, urologists in Korea conducted a study to learn whether HA fillers could correct a sexual health problem that affects an estimated one-third of American men: premature ejaculation.
Although it may seem like an unlikely use for injectable fillers, the researchers who conducted the study theorized that adding volume to the tissues of the glans penis (penile head) using injectable hyaluronic acid would decrease sensitivity in this area and prevent premature ejaculation.
To test this theory, researchers performed glandular augmentation on 65 male patients who suffered from premature ejaculation. This involved injecting 2cc of Perlane, an HA filler in the Restylane family of products, into the penile head.
Six months after treatment, researchers re-evaluated each patient’s ejaculation time, as well as the self-reported satisfaction levels of each patient and their sexual partner.
Post-procedure ejaculation times were found to have increased significantly after penile HA filler injections, and study participants reported a 75% satisfaction rate, while their partners reported a 62% satisfaction rate.
According to study results, glandular augmentation with Perlane proved not only to be an effective treatment for premature ejaculation, but also a relatively safe treatment. The glans penis remained natural without deformity in all patients tested after initial post-injection swelling subsided, and there were no signs of inflammation or reports of serious adverse reactions.
The only downside reported was that glandular augmentation results do not last once the HA filler has been broken down and absorbed by the body. Thus, as with all other HA filler procedures, repeat injections are needed to maintain results.
