Autoeroticism and accidents: why they occur and with what consequences

They happen. And much more often than we know or think. Penises stuck in the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner or in the hole of the gym barbells, or even scrotums forced into rings wrapped around the testicles… Very dangerous activities done unconsciously in an attempt to give oneself greater pleasure during the masturbation.

In the in-depth information published on the site Univadisthe urologist Hubert John of the Winterthur Cantonal Hospital defined them as autoerotic accidents, that is, events that cause a mild to moderate injury due to masturbation or other autoerotic acts. The victims of these accidents are for the most part menbut there is a considerable underground situation, given that many patients out of shame, they hide from the doctor the real cause of the accident or how it really happened. Games that can even end badly, given that, studies in hand, it is estimated that they exist one to two masturbation-related fatalities per million people per year. The most frequent autoerotic accidents? Strangulation of the penis and insertion of foreign bodies into the urethra.

Autoerotic accidents: the most frequent cases

In Germany, at the Maria Hilf clinic in Mönchengladbach, a 40-year-old patient with a swelling of the scrotum, caused by the application of a ring seal around the testicles, to firm them up and increase their sensitivity during masturbation. Not removing the seal immediately, but after many hours, strangulation of the scrotum induced a hemorrhagic infarction of the two testicles, with ten-day drug therapy e testes remained sonographically atrophic on both sides with undetectable testicular perfusion.

Likewise, very dangerous it is inserting the penis into the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner, to increase pleasure, thanks to the suction effect, ignoring however that such a powerful suction can cause bruises, or in the worst case scenario, the foreskin and glans of the penis can touch the rotating fan of the device, risking being cut off.

Another case of autoerotic accident is the insertion of foreign bodies into the urethra: a few years ago a 47 year old man went to the Bundeswehr Hospital in Hamburg after having inserted worms into the urethra to increase pleasure during masturbation. A situation degenerated when the worms were not expelled from the bladder during urination and the larvae broke the fornix.

The expert's comment

We asked Dr. for his opinion Nicola Macchione, urologist doctor, also very active on social media under the name of @md_urologist, where it tries to provide correct information, also regarding this type of accident. «There is nothing wrong with using tools that can maximize pleasure. What's not okay is for people to use devices not created specifically for pleasure. A compliant device must be able to be non-removable, made of medical material, compatible with mucous membranes and lubricants, washable and easily removable».

So why, if there are devices created specifically for this purpose, do people still prefer these “homemade” alternatives?
«Out of embarrassment or shame in purchasing sex toys, even for a sort of cultural “ignorance”, or “I don't know what to ask, I don't know how to use it, so I'll make do”, even for one economic question… But it is very dangerous to rely on what I find at home.”

In addition to the damages already described, what can we suffer?
«For example, if you insert a foreign object into your urethra, you can risk it intestinal perforation. Or if you insert your penis into some unsuitable hole (in the emergency room I have even seen some inserted into bottlenecks!), you risk strangulation of the member, not to mention that courgettes, cucumbers or other vegetables inserted into the anus can break and then “disperse” throughout the body, moving up the intestine. I once saw a patient arrive with an asparagus stuck in his urethra: we couldn't extract it because the softest part split, so we had to intervene surgically. I also remember that in some cases, you may risk death for little games like these.”

How important is it to be timely when these autoerotic incidents occur?
«Fundamental, but often the patients out of shame they delay arriving at the hospital, because they first try to resolve the situation at home improperly, often making it worse. This delay almost always leads to a worse outcome.”

What can be the solutions to similar situations?
«I'll start from the beginning and insist on a point that has always been important to me: we need to educate about healthy and conscious sexuality from an early age, but the message and commitment must start from the institutions. Every now and then some news is released about particular autoerotic incidents that have occurred in a given city: very wrong, because the hunt to identify the “culprit” begins immediately. It would be much more useful to disclose a statement at the beginning of the year report drawn up by institutional channels in which the data regarding these incidences are made public, with the causes and solutions, also reporting the simple useful tips for living a peaceful and safe sexuality. These cases are the result of a sexuality lived unconsciously and ignoring the basic assumption: no one forbids us to stimulate ourselves with external devices, but it must be done in a safe way. Sex toys should not be demonized, but rather seen as an aid for more conscious pleasure».

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