There have been 2 recent studies done on the effectiveness of traction devices at reducing curvature. Paolo Gontero, et al reported an average curvature reduction of 4 degrees. Levine, et al reported an average curvature reduction of 15 degrees. The duration of both studies was 6 months and the hours of use per day was similar. What accounts for the large difference in results between the 2 studies?

Dr. Mulhall answers: It is important for readers of this site to understand that I have no association or financial involvement with FastSize. To summarize the role of traction therapy for PD, firstly there exists some experimental evidence that chronic stretching of scars softens the scar and may result in better function (in the case of the penis, this would mean curvature improvement and length gain). Saying that, to date there is only one small study published demonstrating benefit to the traction device (Levine) while the other demonstrated little benefit (Gontero). It must be said that at his time it is unclear if traction therapy is worth the effort or not. What I tell my patients is that in 2 years we will likely have better, more definitive data, and this may be good or bad news. However, until such time as we have definitive data I recommend my patients consider using the device, but I cannot be 100% certain what the outcome is going to be. Dr. Levine has an ongoing study suggesting there is a benefit to adding traction therapy to intralesional injections and I await the publication of this data. Studying the effect of traction therapy is complicated and the different results between Levine and Gontero’s studies may be multifactorial.