Dr. John Stevens
DAVID TAFFET | Senior Staff Writer
Taffet@DallasVoice.com
Dr. John Stevens founded deNovo almost 30 years ago as a wellness center, and now it is best
But what if the two well known medications don’t work?
Then there’s Trimix, an injectable treatment that predates either of the pills. The drug gets its name from the fact that it’s a mix of three other medications — Prostaglandin, Papaverine Hydrochloride and Phentolamine.
While Viagra and Cialis work throughout the body causing reactions like headache, Trimix only works in the penis and has no side effects elsewhere in the system.
Okay, so here’s where most men get squeamish. Let me point out that the needle used is only 3/16” long and very fine. It’s the same needle diabetics use to inject insulin. Trimix is injected near the base of the penis.
There, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Actually, it sounds worse in print than the needle looks in person.
While you might share your Viagra or Cialis, Trimix is made of three medications that should only be used in that particular dosage by the person it’s prescribed for.
“It’s potentially dangerous,” Stevens warns, for someone else to use your prescription.
A Trimix prescription varies the dose based on your age, whether you are on any other medications, your blood pressure and if you have diabetes. Other health issues may also be taken into consideration.
With a proper prescription, Trimix takes effect in about five minutes. The oral medications take at least 30 minutes and may take one-to-two hours to show their full effect.
Given the wrong prescription, you may end up with a case of priapism — a full erection that won’t go down. Untreated it will cause pain after four hours and may trigger damage after 12 hours.
The example Stevens has seen is a healthy guy in his 20s who used the Trimix prescribed to an older partner taking medication for high blood pressure. They were using the mixture as a party drug. It may also occur during a first consultation when sensitivity has yet to be established.
What to do
Here’s a written warning Stevens gives to his patients under the title, “What to do if I Have a Priapism.”
After 4 hours of UNRELENTING ERECTION the following measures MUST BE taken without delay after you call Dr. John Stevens.
a. Stop having sexual relations or masturbation
b. Take 120mg of Sudafed (pseudoephedrine) and wait ½ hour
c. Take a warm bath or Jacuzzi for 40 minutes
d. If erection has not subsided, take another 60 mg.
Note: Ignore this step if you are on high blood pressure medication.
Try to relax. If you can urinate, that’s a good thing. If after four hours there’s still a full erection, call your doctor who will probably have you go to urgent care or the emergency room.
The treatment then is to use a needle to withdraw blood from the penis. And this is a bigger needle than used for the Trimix injection, but Stevens said he does numb it with lidocaine first.
If the erection continues, more blood has entered the penis and more blood needs to be withdrawn. The longer blood remains in the penis, the more the possibility of clotting. That makes it harder to remove the blood from the affected area and may cause permanent damage.
Stevens warns that Trimix should only be used once in a 24-hour period.
Trimix should be kept refrigerated. To use, fill the syringe with the mixture. Grasp the tip of the penis with thumb and forefinger. Identify the place to inject either at the 11 o’clock or 1 o’clock position but not at 12 o’clock
The mixture is then injected into the cavernosum, the pair of spongy erectile tissue that run along the top of the penis.
For someone with erectile dysfunction, that should provide several hours of pleasure.
Interested in discussing ED treatment with Dr. Stevens? He can be reached at deNovo, 4211 Cedar Springs Road at 214-219-4100.