Stop Viagra, try the bionic penis

It's not all doom and gloom for men who can't get it up.

Bionic like penile implants may be the Vrrr Phah! you need. A study that for the first time included black men found that erectile dysfunction (ED) affects 2.7 million men in South Africa alone.

Nicole Jennings, spokesperson for Pharma Dynamic who specialises in men's health, says in a country such as South Africa where the majority (78%) of men that are 20 years and older are black, the findings are significant. She says it's not only men over 40 who are being diagnosed but the condition affects younger men too.

Dr Shingai Mutumbirwa, a urologist, says what most men who have given up on erection pills don't know is that they have various medical options available such as penile implants or what Americans refer to as the bionic penis.

"The technology is not new and has been coming along since the 1970s. There are reusable vacuum erection devices which you can purchase over the counter, injectables or penile surgery which involves inserting one of two prosthesis: A non-inflatable malleable prosthesis or the Rolls Royce of devices called the inflatable three-piece prosthesis.

"The best of this technology is supplied in SA by Boston scientific and surgeries are performed mostly in Pretoria and Cape Town by highly specialised neurosurgeons. Medical aids do not cover these hefty surgeries however - unless the motivation calls for it in very unique cases," he says.

Vacuum hand-held pumps are the cheapest at about R1,500, but are also said to be painful as they involve an elastic band tied at the base of the penis while the user pumps until he becomes erect.