What Do We Know About Potency After A Robitic Prostatectomy
The return of potency is dependent on several factors:
- Previous sexual function before surgery. Unfortunately, robotic prostatectomy will at best return you to your level of sexual function pre-surgery. It will not improve upon what you already had before surgery.
- Age. Theyounger you are, the better your chances. Men under 65 have abetter chance of regaining potency, or erectile function than those over 65.
- How many nerves are spared. As discussed previously, ideally both nerves can be spared and thiswill give you the highest chance of regain erections. However,even men with no nerve sparing can regain erectile function.
Ejaculation will no longer occur in any patient. This is because the seminal vesicles and the vas deferens , are removed and cut during the surgery. This means that you will no longer be able to father children
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What Is Normal Time To Release Sperm
There’s no fixed time to release sperm while masturbating. You can release sperm as early as within 5 minutes or slowly masturbate for 30-60 minutes. It entirely depends on you. A study conducted with 500 couples from 5 different countries concluded that the average time to ejaculate was ~ 5.5 minutes during sex. However, this depends from couple to couple and the intensity of stimulation. There is no definitive answer for what is the normal time to release sperm.
May Reduce Prostate Cancer Risk
Ejaculation may have certain health benefits. High occurrences of ejaculation may reduce the risk of prostate cancer.
One study examines this, analyzing 31,925 male health professionals in the United States from 1992 to 2010. The participants were mostly Caucasian people aged 40â75.
They filled in a questionnaire in 1992 detailing how often they ejaculated per month at different ages. The follow-ups looked at cases of prostate cancer and the link between ejaculation frequencies.
The study found an association between more frequent ejaculation and a reduced risk of prostate cancer. However, researchers need to study this topic further.
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Blood And Lymphatic Vessels
The prostate receives blood through the inferior vesical artery, internal pudendal artery, and middle rectal arteries. These vessels enter the prostate on its outer posterior surface where it meets the bladder, and travel forward to the apex of the prostate. Both the inferior vesical and the middle rectal arteries often arise together directly from the internal iliac arteries. On entering the bladder, the inferior vesical artery splits into a urethral branch, supplying the urethral prostate and a capsular branch, which travels around the capsule and has smaller branches which perforate into the prostate.
The veins of the prostate form a network the prostatic venous plexus, primarily around its front and outer surface. This network also receives blood from the deep dorsal vein of the penis, and is connected via branches to the vesical plexus and internal pudendal veins. Veins drain into the vesical and then internal iliac veins.
The lymphatic drainage of the prostate depends on the positioning of the area. Vessels surrounding the vas deferens, some of the vessels in the seminal vesicle, and a vessel from the posterior surface of the prostate drain into the external iliac lymph nodes. Some of the seminal vesicle vessels, prostatic vessels, and vessels from the anterior prostate drain into internal iliac lymph nodes. Vessels of the prostate itself also drain into the obturator and sacral lymph nodes.
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Microscopic glands of the prostate
Urinary Problems After Surgery
Leaking urine
Most men cant control their bladder properly when their catheter is first removed. This is because surgery can damage the muscles and nerves that control when you urinate.You might just leak a few drops if you exercise, cough or sneeze . Or you might leak more and need to wear absorbent pads, especially in the weeks after your surgery.Leaking urine usually improves with time. Most men start to see an improvement one to six months after surgery. Some men leak urine for a year or more and others never fully recover, but there are things that can help and ways you can manage it.
Difficulty urinating
A few men may find it difficult to urinate after surgery . This can be caused by scarring around the opening of the bladder or the urethra .Some men find they suddenly and painfully cant urinate. This is called acute urine retention and it needs treating quickly to prevent further problems. If this happens, call your doctor or nurse, or go to your nearest accident and emergency department.
Watch Pauls story for one mans experience of managing urinary problems after surgery below.
Sexual problems after surgery
Change in penis size and shape
Changes to orgasm
The seminal vesicles, which make some of the fluid in semen, are removed during surgery. This means you wont ejaculate any more. You may have a dry orgasm instead where you feel the sensation of orgasm but dont ejaculate. This may feel different to the orgasms youre used to.
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Is There Any Reason To Control Your Ejaculation Frequency
Theres an old Taoist belief that controlling how often you ejaculate helps you preserve whats believed to be a finite amount of energy. Abstaining from ejaculation is thought to allow the energy contained in sperm to return to the brain and supply it with energy.
This practice is the origin of the 24 times a year idea. In fact, some Taoist teachers recommend that you only ejaculate 20 to 30 percent of the times you have sex. That translates to 2 or 3 times out of every 10 sessions.
But these ideas arent backed by any hard science. And many Taoists teachers urge people to focus on personal feelings of strength and refreshment after ejaculation rather than specific figures.
Whats Involved In A Prostate Exam And When Is It Needed
Due to the location of the prostate , it is possible to feel the organ with a finger inserted into the rectum. The tissues of the stroma give the prostate an elastic feel to the touch.
Several prostate health issues may develop as a man ages, in particular prostatitis , enlarged prostate , and prostate cancer.
A prostate exam, also known as a digital rectal exam, is a common procedure to help diagnose these issues.
For the exam, a doctor will insert a gloved, lubricated finger into your rectum while you’re standing, bending forward at the waist, or lying on your side with knees pulled up .
The doctor will feel your prostate to determine its size and look for bumps, hard spots, or other abnormalities that may be indicative of prostate cancer.
The prostate exam is not typically painful unless there’s an abnormality within your prostate.
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Side View Of The Prostate
The prostate is a walnut-sized gland located between the bladder and the penis. The prostate is just in front of the rectum. The urethra runs through the center of the prostate, from the bladder to the penis, letting urine flow out of the body.
The prostate secretes fluid that nourishes and protects sperm. During ejaculation, the prostate squeezes this fluid into the urethra, and itâs expelled with sperm as semen.
The vasa deferentia bring sperm from the testes to the seminal vesicles. The seminal vesicles contribute fluid to semen during ejaculation.
Are There Things I Can Do To Help Myself If I Have Erectile Dysfunction
Yes, there are changes you can make in your life that may help with your erectile dysfunction. Remember to speak with your doctor or healthcare team before making any of these changes.
Some changes you may want to consider are:
- Try to exercise on a regular basis.
- Try to eat a healthy diet.
- Drink responsibly. Long-term, heavy drinking lowers your ability to have an erection.
- Try to lower your stress and fatigue . Being diagnosed with prostate cancer and working in all the changes it brings to your life can be stressful. Stress and the tiredness caused by your prostate cancer treatment, can make it difficult for you to get in the mood. Many men going through prostate cancer treatment feel this way. Talking with your partner might help lower your stress. You may also speak to your doctor or healthcare team about how you are feeling. They are there to help you through this time.
- Stop smoking. Research studies show that smoking can harm your ability to have sex. If you need help to stop smoking, speak with your doctor or healthcare team.
- Practice your Kegel exercises. Kegel exercises help strengthen your pelvic floor muscles, which support your bladder and bowel. These muscles also help with erections. For more information, please see the IMPACT booklet, Kegel Exercises for Men.
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Why Is There Increasing Concern At This Time Regarding Erectile Dysfunction Issues Following Radical Prostatectomy
The reality of the recovery process after radical prostatectomy today is that erectile function recovery lags behind functional recovery in other areas. Patients are understandably concerned about this issue and, following months of erectile dysfunction, become skeptical of reassurances that their potency will return.
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Your Immune System Gets Weaker
Orgasms are incredibly beneficial to your immune system, as psychologists Carl Charnetski and Francis Brennan Jr. found. They conducted a study where they asked patients who were having sex once or twice a week to provide saliva samples. Those samples were found to contain an extremely high concentration of the common-cold busting antibody immunoglobulin A. Who knew that extremely close contact was a net-positive in terms of preventing illness?
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How Is Yellow Semen Treated
You should see your healthcare provider any time you notice unusual body changes like yellow or brownish semen with specks. Brown or speckled semen may indicate blood in semen .
Yellow or brown semen may not be cause for concern. But it could indicate a problem that requires treatment.
Treatments vary depending on the underlying cause. They may include:
- Antibiotics for infections and certain STDs.
- Antiviral medications for viral infections.
How Long Does It Take For Sperm To Refill
Another pertinent question, how long does it take for sperm to refill? Well, the answer to this is associated with the refractory period. This is when you achieve orgasm and then return to the general physical and mental state.
During this period, men do not usually experience any sexual triggers. The period’s length can also help us identify how many times a man can ejaculate in a day.
Men between 25 to 40 may need less time, while boomers can take some time to get back on the horse.
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What Happens If You Stop Ejaculating
What happens when you block sperm from coming out? Whether or not you ejaculate has no bearing on your sex drive or fertility levels. There are no specific benefits of not ejaculating, or side effects of not ejaculating, really. Sperms cells that go unused are merely reabsorbed by your body or released through nocturnal emissions- what we commonly refer to as ‘wet dreams.’ However, if you think that the sperm retention theory will help you perform better in bed or make your ejaculation experience all the more robust or stronger- this is not true.
Wasting Sperm Is Good Or Bad
It’s not bad to ejaculate or masturbate, so “wasting” sperm isn’t bad. Moreover, your body produces millions of sperm every day, so even if you ejaculate in excess, you aren’t exactly wasting sperm. Did you know 1 ml of semen contains 100 million of sperm cells? On the contrary, retrograde ejaculation can be bad for health and cause infertility in men.
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Your Work Performance Might Slip
Most dry spells have two parts: the part where you’re insanely horny and turned on by even a slightly curvaceous frying pain and the part where you’re down in the dumps and can’t even be motivated to get off the couch. Apparently, that can even spill over into your employment satisfaction. An Oregon State University study found that couples with an active sex life were much happier at work.
“Maintaining a healthy relationship that includes a healthy sex life will help employees stay happy and engaged in their work, which benefits the employees and the organizations they work for,” says Keith Leavitt, an associate professor at the college. There you go, guys: feel free to blame missing that Zoom call on not getting laid. I’m sure your boss will understand.
Does Releasing Sperm Affect Muscle Growth
No, releasing sperm does not affect muscle growth. Testosterone is responsible for assisting in muscle build-up by synthesizing protein. It is true that you lose protein when you ejaculate. However, the important part is that this amount is negligible and has no effect whatsoever on the building up of your muscle mass.
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Changes To Orgasm And Ejaculation
After prostate cancer treatment you will still have feeling in your penis and you should still be able to have an orgasm, but this may feel different from before. Some men lose the ability to orgasm, especially if theyre on hormone therapy.
If youve had radical prostatectomy, you will no longer ejaculate when you orgasm. This is because the prostate and seminal vesicles, which make some of the fluid in semen, are both removed during the operation. Instead you may have a dry orgasm where you feel the sensation of orgasm but dont ejaculate. Occasionally, you might release a small amount of liquid from the tip of your penis during orgasm, which may be fluid from glands lining the urethra.
If youve had radiotherapy, brachytherapy, high intensity focused ultrasound or hormone therapy, you may produce less semen during and after treatment. With radiotherapy, brachytherapy and HIFU you may also notice a small amount of blood in the semen. This usually isnt a problem but tell your doctor or nurse if this happens. Some men on hormone therapy say their orgasms feel less intense.
Some men leak urine when they orgasm, or feel pain. Others find they dont last as long during sex and reach orgasm quite quickly.
Q: What Side Effects May Occur After Robotic Surgery Is There A Way To Recover
Answer: The robot will bleed a lot of surgery before the operation, so the risk of heart disease and stroke is higher. Now that the robot has a knife, it bleeds very little, almost two hundred CC. But at first you will have a urinary tube when you leave the hospital, and it will be pulled out after about a week. Most patients will need to wear a diaper when the catheter is pulled out, and then may need to change three to four times a day. After slowly recovering, maybe three to six months, the bladder control will be better.
Most young people will suffer from impotence if they are operated on, but they can be recovered. However, 50% of patients over 65 years old may not recover. This depends on the age.
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Ejaculation May Lower Prostate Cancer Risk
The findings, published in the April 7 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association, are based on data collected from nearly 30,000 predominately white men aged 46 to 81.
At the start of the study, men provided information on ejaculation frequency in their 20s, 40s, and in the previous year . Ejaculation frequency included sexual intercourse, masturbation, and nighttime ejaculations that can occur during sleep. The men were then monitored for eight years.
Researchers found most categories of ejaculation frequency were unrelated to prostate cancer risk. But when they looked at men in the highest category of ejaculation frequency, they found evidence of a protective effect.
“When you look at the data in a little bit more detail, you do see that not only is there not an increased risk, but there is potentially even the possibility of a slight decrease in risk with high ejaculation frequency,” says researcher Michael Leitzmann, MD, an investigator at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Md. Leitzmann conducted the research during a post-doctoral fellowship at Harvard University.
Leitzmann says researchers suspected that ejaculation frequency might be a marker of a healthier, more active lifestyle. But when they accounted for diet, exercise, and other risk factors for prostate cancer, the link between frequent ejaculation and lower prostate cancer risk remained.
What Is The Anatomy Of The Penis
The penis is made up of:
- Two chambers called the corpora cavernosa, which run the length of the organ and contain a maze of blood vessels shaped like cavernous spaces .
- The urethra, or channel for urine and sperm, which runs along the underside of the corpora cavernosa.
- Erectile tissue, which surrounds the urethra, two main arteries and several veins and nerves.
- The shaft, the longest part of the penis.
- The head , which is at the end of the shaft.
- The meatus, or opening at the tip of the head where urine and semen are discharged.
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What Is Prostate Cancer
Cancer can start any place in the body. Prostate cancer starts in the prostate gland. It starts when cells in the prostate grow out of control.
Cancer cells can spread to other parts of the body. Cancer cells in the prostate can sometimes travel to the bones or other organs and grow there. When cancer cells do this, its called metastasis. To doctors, the cancer cells in the new place look just like the ones from the prostate.
Cancer is always named for the place where it starts. So when prostate cancer spreads to the bones , its still called prostate cancer. Its not called bone cancer unless it starts from cells in the bone.
Ask your doctor to use this picture to show you where your cancer is.
The prostate
The prostate is a gland found only in men, so only men can get prostate cancer.
The prostate is just below the bladder and in front of the rectum . The tube that carries pee goes through the prostate. The prostate makes some of the fluid that helps keep the sperm alive and healthy.
There are a few types of prostate cancer. Some are very rare. Most prostate cancers are a type called adenocarcinoma. This cancer starts from gland cells. Your doctor can tell you more about the type you have.