A 27-year-old Tunisian man woke up to a cracking sound while sleeping. He suffered severe pain, flaccidity and swelling in the entire area.
Doctors were able to repair both fractures in his penis, and within days he even returned to normal function. The young man suffered from what is informally known in the medical world as "eggplant deformity", in which the penis becomes swollen and purple, looking like an eggplant. The patient suffered no long-term problems with urination or sexual function as a result of the rare event he experienced, the doctors concluded in a case analysis published in International Surgery of Case Reports. The man was released from the hospital 12 months later with no complications, the study editors concluded. The case analysis was published in the journal International Surgery and Case Reports, which is published by the Royal College of Surgeons of England. For confidential support on suicide matters call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90, visit a local Samaritans branch or click here for details.