An Indonesian man’s moment of pleasure quickly turned into excruciating pain when he fractured his penis while having sex with his partner.
According to a study published in the Urology Case Reports journal, the 37-year-old unidentified man sought medical attention after he heard a pop during intercourse.
Doctors likened his broken penis to an eggplant, and said it was bloody and blue when he reported to General Hospital of West Nusa Tenggara Province three hours later.
The couple were having sex in the reverse cowgirl position, where a woman sits on top with her back to her partner, when the incident happened.
“He suddenly heard a ‘cracking’ sound followed by pain, discomfort and immediate loss of erection. Blood was discharged from the [tip] of the penis accompanied by an inability to urinate,” the study says.
While penises technically don’t have bones, the injury is called a penile fracture because the connective tissue responsible for an erection ruptures when there’s blunt force trauma to an erect penis.
The man then had to undergo emergency surgery. Doctors they peeled away the top layer of the skin, removed the damaged tissue and repaired the urethra via a procedure called urethroplasty.
His penis was still blue when the bandage was removed three days after the operation, but during a check-up a few weeks later, doctors found he was making good progress.
The man was able to get an erection as well as urinate normally without the assistance of a catheter.
According to researchers, penile fracture is easy to recognise and “prompt surgical intervention with urethral reconstruction provides good results with few complications”.
While only a few similar cases have been reported worldwide, the incident has sparked new warnings from doctors that people should refrain from indulging in risky sex positions like the reverse cowgirl.
“Fractures most frequently occurred in the “female superior” position during sexual activity,” the study explains.
“It frequently affects males between the ages of 30 and 50 who are sexually active,”
In 2021, a doctor explained on popular video hosting app TikTok why this sexual position has the potential to end in tears.
Dr Karan Raj said if there’s any erratic thrusting or if the movements of the two parties aren’t in sync it could lead to the penis slipping out and being crushed by the female pubic bone.
“Over-enthusiastic sex could leave your penis looking like an aubergine,” he added.