The ezPalm Blog

WHAT IS PEYRONIE’S DISEASE?

Peyronie’s disease consists of hard, fibrous tissue, called plaques, developing within the penile shaft. The plaques are hard, thickened and stiff areas, actually a kind of internal scarring. In this fibroid tissue also calcium compounds can accumulate, making the plaques even harder.

The Peyronie’s disease is also called cavernositis, and also sometimes plastic induration. There is probably a chronic inflammation process that leads to this scarring.

The thickened area has less blood flow than normal penile tissue, and do not fill with blood and swell as the normal spongy areas in the inside of the penis. Therefore the penis swells more at the opposite side, and gets a curvature towards the side containing the plaques when erected.

If the plaques are found at several places, more complex deformations will develop. The abnormal bending, twisting or swelling within the penis, often also lead to painful erections.

Any man from the age of 18 and upwards can develop Peyronie’s disease. The average age of men suffering from Peyronie`s disease is 50.

THE SYMPTOMS AND CONSEQUENCES OF THE CONDITION

The three main characteristics of cavernositis are:

- One or more small hard lumps underneath the skin, or a continuous hard, stiff and thickened area.

- Abnormal bent or crooked penis when erect. All penises have some curvature, but by this disease, the penile bend increases, and one may get a very curved penis. The penis may be bent as a banana or in an angular fashion. The penile bending is most often up, but may be down, to the left side, to right or sloping.

-The bending is usually to the same side as that of the hard thickened area when the penis is erected.

-The hard areas in the erected penis may look like bumps, making the penis irregular.

- Sometimes the penis bends greatly enough to make sexual intercourse difficult, or impossible.

- Pain during erections caused by the pressure from the hard areas in the penis, or from the stretched skin at the opposite side of the penis.

- One may not notice the bend immediately, as it tends to develop over one to three months and later than the hardness and stiffness of the indurations.

- The plastic induration may progress and cause impotence. Sometimes the Peyroni’s disease will clear up by itself, but this may take several years.

THE CAUSES OF PEYRONIES DISEASE

The exact cause of the induration is unknown. It’s not a sign of an underlying serious condition, and it is not a sexually transmitted infection. It is possible that the disease can begin with an inflammation in the penile tissue. An inflammation may be caused by an allergic or auto-immune reaction. Although the Peyronie’s disease is not an infection, an initial infection can damage the penile tissue and cause an inflammation that develops into Peyronie’s disease. Men having the inflammatory condition called Systemic Lupus Erytematosus more often get Peyronie’s disease.

Vitamin E deficiency seems to be a contributing factor in causing the disease. Diabetes may cause damage of blood vessels, and if this damage occurs in the erectile bodies of the penis, Peyronie’s disease can develop. Peyronie’s disease is sometimes a side effect of the drug Inderal (propanolol) used against high blood pressure.

Sometimes a physical injury to the penis that causes internal bleeding, or a series of such injuries, is the initial cause. A habit of violent sexual activity may cause such injuries. It is thought that some men may have a genetic disposition to the condition.

Plastic induration of the penis is not a cancer, and cannot cause cancer, however a lump or deformation in your genitals that develops, must be examined.

TREATMENT OG PEYRONIE’S DISEASE

Not all men with Payronie’s disease require treatment. The disease sometimes go away by itself. If the condition is pronounced, it is also difficult to find a remedy that can cure every sign of the disease, but several methods can take away most penis changes associated with Peyronie’s. Here is a survey of treatment methods used today.

Tamoxifen - In its early stages of the disease a medication called Tamoxifen has been shown to prevent the formation of the fibrous plaque by Peyronie’s disease. This drug is also used in the treatment of breast cancer, but the two conditions are not related.

Vitamin E and B - Vitamin E and B is sometimes effective in easing the pain and as a treatment for the penile deformity by Peyronie’s disease.

Verapamil - Verapamil, often used in the treatment of high blood pressure, has been shown to decrease the size of the plaque and decrease the pain when injected directly into the plaque, and thus also improve the penis shape distortion by peyronie’s disease.

Shock wave therapy - Extracorporeal shock wave therapy, or ESWT, a new treatment, is being used in some hospitals for the Peyronie’s disease. Although the initial results of this new approach to treat Peyronie’s disease have been promising, the long-term outcome is still undetermined.

Surgery - This is sometimes considered if Payroni’s disease has lasted for a year or more and it hasn’t progressed or regressed for at least three months. By the Nesbitt procedure one removes tissue opposite to the curve to straighten the penis. Another procedure involves putting a graft or part of a vein within the fibrous plaque to lengthen this area. In certain cases of Pyrenees disease, surgical insertion of a penile prosthesis (implant) is recommended.

Radiation therapy - This treatment modality has been tried, but the results are unpredictable and sometimes the opposite of the intended one.

Traction devices - On the market, you can buy mechanical devices to use on the penis some time daily that gently pull upon the penile tissue to straighten out the penis, and thus mending the penis from the curvature caused by Peyronie’s disease.

Records management is one of the most important elements of good business management, and there are several instances when you need to destroy your records for the good of your customer and for your own protection.

1. You Don’t Want To Break The Law, Do You?

Your business or organization must comply with regulations and laws. These regulations require that your business or company protect vital information when it is discarded. HIPAA and the GLB act needs certain physical safety measures such as shredding or proper document destruction to be done to meet this requirement.

2. Make Your Clients Happy

Oftentimes, individuals are afraid of identity theft and invasion of privacy through those pertinent information that your company’s records database contains. It is your sole responsibility as the records manager to destroy these documents for them since you are entrusted with information that they deem to be very confidential. Many clients know that you are supposed to protect all their confidential information through destruction. If your employees’ (current or former) privacy that is at stake, you should not wonder if they know that it is your responsibility to protect their personal information.

3. Document Destruction in Its Many Forms

- Shredding
- Physical Destruction
- Incineration

4. One-time or Often?

It is important that before you even consider hiring a document destruction service you have to identify first whether your company needs one-time shredding only or a regular shredding service.

5. How Should It Be Destroyed?

The type of shredding method - plant based or mobile - will be further decided on as you go through these steps.

6. How To Choose A Company

- Ensure they are certified
- Do they provide a schedule to shred documents?
- References and past clientele
- Do they provide shred bins?
- Will bins be locked physically?
- Are any extra services provided, such as for non-paper destruction?
- Will products be recycled, or destroyed? There is a huge difference!
- What will the total cost be? A high price tag does not guarantee service.

For more great document shredding related articles and resources check out
http://www.theshreddingplace.com

Work at home medical billing seems like the perfect job for you. You own a computer, you want to stay home, pick your own hours. You will even be trained and given leads to professionals that need your service.

But the chances of making the money claimed are slim. Consumers don’t realize what they’re getting into. Newcomers to the medical billing market with no experience and no contacts in the medical field will face fierce competition. As the FTC alleged, most of the consumers didn’t earn a dime.

Not all medical billing opportunities are scams. For consumers interested in buying a medical billing business opportunity, the FTC offers advice:

• Check with the state Attorney General’s office, consumer protection agency and the Better Business Bureau in your area and the area where the medical billing promoter is based to learn whether any unresolved complaints about them or the promoter are on file. Be aware, however, that the absence of complaints doesn’t necessarily mean the medical billing company is legitimate. But at least you can rule them out if there is.

• Be wary of the medical billing promoter wants to only provide a few references.

• Interview these references in person and ask for the names of their clients and a description of their operations.

• Consult an attorney, accountant or other business advisor before signing any agreement or paying any money.

• Consult with organizations for medical claims processors or medical billing businesses and with local doctors.

• If the medical billing opportunity sells another company’s software, check with the software company to find out whether company representatives know of any problems with the medical billing promoter.

All these things may seem like a difficult task, but real medical billing is a business. You need to treat it like one. Don’t be afraid to ask the medical billing promoter questions.

Richard Amburn http://www.all-medical-billing.com