Extracorporeal shock wave therapy in Peyronie's disease: clinical efficacy and safety from a single-arm observational study

Purpose: In this study, we aimed to determine the role of extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) in the management of Peyronie’s disease (PD). Materials and Methods: A total of 325 patients suffering from PD were enrolled in this single-arm clinical study. All patients were received ESWT using a schedule of 1 treatment/wk. Penile curvature was measured by a goniometer after intracavernosal drug-induced erection using Alprostadil. Plaque size was measured with a ruler and sexual function assessed by the international index of erectile function (IIEF)-15 score. Severity of erectile dysfunction was classified as severe (IIEF-15 ≤10), moderate (IIEF-15 between 11 and 16), or mild (IIEF-15 between 17 and 25). Results were evaluated at baseline and 3 months after the treatment. Results: All the patients completed the study protocol. Median age was 59.0 years (55.0–64.0 years). After treatment, the median (interquartile range, IQR) plaque size reduced from 1.78 cm2 (1.43–2.17 cm2) to 1.53 cm2 (1.31–1.96 cm2) (p<0.001); the median (IQR) penile length in erection increased from 13.0 cm (12.0–14.0 cm) to 14 cm (13.0–15.0 cm) (p<0.001) and the median (IQR) penile curvature from 30.4° (22.2°–35.4°) to 25.0° (20.2°–30.4°) (p<0.001). We also observed a decrease in pain assessed by visual analogue scale (7 vs. 3; p<0.001), an improvement in each of the IIEF sub-domains (p<0.001) and an improvement in all three PD questionnaire domains (p<0.001). Conclusions: Based on our findings, ESWT could be considered a safe and efficient minimally invasive option for the management of the patients suffering from PD.