A 35-year-old man has been left with life-altering injuries after a surgeon accidentally sliced through his penis during a botched enlargement operation in Seoul, South Korea. The procedure, carried out in 2020, resulted in the severing of the corpus cavernosum and corpus spongiosum, the erectile tissues essential for sexual function.
The patient now suffers from loss of sexual function, difficulties urinating, and psychological distress. In January 2024, a court ordered the urologist to pay approximately £13,100 in damages. The doctor appealed, but in August 2024, the appeal was dismissed, and an additional £3,000 was awarded in compensation.
During the trial, it was alleged that the patient had not been fully informed of the risks, particularly given his prior penis implant surgery, which had fused to the tissue. The court noted that the patient might have refused the surgery had the risks been properly explained. It was also stated that the injury could have been avoided if the surgeon had halted the dissection when warning signs appeared.
Separately, a rise in botched penis enlargement procedures has been reported in Scotland, with men attending unregulated 'pop-up clinics' in Glasgow. An insider at Paisley's Royal Alexandra Hospital revealed that one patient required a penile amputation after a Vaseline-type substance was injected, and another suffered a severe reaction to Botox. The insider warned of an increasing number of men presenting with complications from such procedures.
