The toothpaste method

How it works:

This method has gained a lot of popularity recently because it is part of a treatment protocol promoted by some of the top selling PPP ebooks. Basically, this method suggests using a skin drying agent such as toothpaste, mud mask, oatmeal or calamine lotion.

You are first told to apply the drying agent to your papules and leave it on for about 15 minutes. Once the penile surface has dried up, you are instructed to scrub your dried papules with an exfoliating face wash. Finally, you are told to apply a soothing agent, such as aloe vera gel, to subside the inevitable inflammation that you’ll experience from the drying/scrubbing process.

The faulty logic behind this method:

This treatment method was developed based on the assumption that pearly penile papules are the result of excess sebum (oil) trapped under your penile skin. The promoters of this treatment method reason that stripping away the natural oils from your penile skin should technically lead to a natural regression of your papules.

This makes absolutely no sense.

One glaring anatomical fact that this method ignores is that there are no sebaceous glands on your penile head. Your glans (penile head) makes no sebum, let alone excess amounts of it that could possibly get trapped under the surface, making this entire treatment protocol illogical.

The danger:

Not only is this treatment method based on a flawed understanding of what pearly penile papules really are, it is also extremely dangerous.

Keep in mind that your penile surface lacks the shielding layer of dead skin cells typically found on top of normal skin. To make up for this vulnerability, the body has devoted a rich moisture barrier to your penile surface to protect it from abrasions.

What makes the toothpaste method exceptionally harmful is that it first leaves your penile surface vulnerable to friction, then it asks you to do the very thing that your glans can’t defend against – it asks you to apply friction to your papules by scrubbing them!

This kind of irresponsible advice almost ensures that your penile tissue will experience damage when you try it.

So why do people keep suggesting this method?

Because this method tricks you into thinking that it’s working even though it’s actually damaging your penile tissue.

What happens during the course of this treatment is that the top layer of your papules begins to wear thin. To the average person this may look like the papules are getting slightly flatter and may even seem like proof that the treatment is working. But what’s really happening is that your penile tissue is being set up for serious injury.

What actually happens is that in the beginning few days of the treatment you simply wear away the surface of your papules. Bear in mind that at this point the fibrotic clumps deep under your papules stay unaffected, so the papule itself remains unchanged. However, the penile surface is now completely defenseless. As you continue with the treatment and go through the process of repeated drying and scrubbing, the penile mucosa gets worn away to the point of being ulcerated.

What follows the initial improvement in the appearance of your papules is a wave of fierce inflammation that is so damaging that it often requires medical treatment. It’s no wonder that each year thousands of PPP sufferers using this method end up abandoning their treatment efforts because of penile tissue injury.

Wart treatments

How it works:

This is another method that has been popularized by PPP ebooks claiming that it is a “fail-safe” way to cure pearly penile papules. The authors of these books recommend that you try common wart treatments to “dissolve away” your papules, just the way these treatments normally disintegrate warts.

Some of the common wart treatments recommended by this method include:

• Cryotherapy which freezes away warts
• Tinctures of volatile oils such as thuja oil or tea tree oil
• Concentrated Salicylic Acid which is a much stronger version of acne creams

These treatments work on the principle of tissue destruction as a way of quickly getting rid of raised skin lesions such as warts. In other words, these products are literally designed to damage the wart tissue in a controlled way so that when the body tries to heal itself, it simply discards the dead tissue.

There’s no doubt that this method works extremely well for treating warts. However, before you even consider trying wart treatment on your papules, be warned that they can leave your penis severely scarred.

Here’s why…

The faulty logic behind this method:

The tissue composition of pearly penile papules is completely different from that of genital warts.

Warts form when the outer layer of your skin becomes fibrous and penile papules form when the inner layer of the penile skin develops fibrotic clumps. This may seem like a small difference but when it comes to treating the problem, it completely changes the equation.

Because warts have tough outer layers, their treatments are purposely designed to be harsh and aggressive in order to break down the fibrous tissue on the outside. However, the outer surface of penile papules is made up of a delicate mucosa that is easily injured – the exact opposite of genital warts. Applying wart treatment to your papules can quickly damage the penile tissue, often resulting in disfiguring scars that look far worse than the papules themselves.

The strip method

How it works:

This method uses hair waxing strips or blackhead removal strips in an attempt to peel away the papules from your penile skin.

The faulty logic behind this method:

Many people wrongly think that pearly penile papules are the result of blocked pores and suggest that using tape or anything sticky to literally strip away the “blockages” should open the pores, allowing the debris inside to clear.

There is absolutely no factual basis for this reasoning and like most other methods, this treatment can leave your penile tissue severely damaged.

The danger:

First, it is crucial to understand that pearly penile papules are not the result of blocked pores. In fact, the penile surface has no pores that can get blocked. Second, it is equally important to note that the surface of the glans is not like normal skin. It is made up of an exposed epithelium similar to the inside of your eyelids and applying anything too hot or sticky to this bare surface can physically strip away this delicate outer lining, resulting in extreme pain and injury.

The tape method

How it works:

This method calls for applying duct tape to your papules and keeping the tape on for about a week. You are then instructed to remove the tape, soak the affected area in water and scrub the papules with a nail filer or pumice stone.

The faulty logic behind this method:

This method became popular after research showed it works extremely well for treating warts. It is believed to work by triggering a local immune response in the skin patch that is taped. When the body recognizes the prolonged presence of a foreign substance on the skin surface, it reacts by trying to eliminate that substance by shedding the skin faster. Some also believe it may be the chemicals in duct tape glue that trigger this response.

The reason this method doesn’t work for PPP is because the fibers that make up warts are found on the outer layer of the skin and the fibers that make up pearly penile papules are found deep under the surface. Even if you managed to tape your papules for a long time, the immune response will not lead to a removal of the fibrotic clumps deep inside. In fact, there’s a good chance you will severely irritate the penile surface within hours of attempting this method.

The danger:

The goal of the tape method is to trigger an immune response in the affected skin. While this is an effective strategy for eliminating warts, this is the last thing you want when treating your papules. Remember, unlike warts, pearly penile papules have a rich supply of blood vessels inside them. This means even minor immune responses can give rise to extreme bouts of inflammation which can spread beyond the individual papules and affect your entire glans (penile head).

The skin banding method

How it works:

This method is based on a popular way of treating skin tags and moles. It involves tying your individual papules tightly with a piece of thread or dental floss to choke off blood flow to them.

The faulty logic behind this method:

Skin banding works on the principle that cutting off blood flow to any soft tissue causes it to necrotize and die. Now to be fair, this is an effective way of treating skin tags. When you tie off the base of a skin tag with thread or dental floss, it does slowly wither away from the lack of blood and oxygen. Since skin tags look similar to papules, many assume that the same method should also work on them. It doesn’t and here’s why…

The danger:

Remember, while pearly penile papules may look similar to skin tags, anatomically they are quite different from each other. The biggest difference between skin tags and pearly penile papules is that papules have nerves inside them. This is why tying them is such a dangerous idea.

Cutting off blood flow to your papules can quickly lead to nerve cell death. Since these nerves are responsible for penile sensations and play a crucial role during sexual arousal, damage to these nerves from skin banding can lead to a permanent loss of penile sensitivity.

Acne treatments

How it works:

Since pearly penile papules do bear some visual resemblance to acne, many PPP sufferers try to get rid of their papules by using some type of acne treatment (for ex. spot treatments or medicated washes). This is especially common with younger PPP sufferers that have already seen how well acne treatments work and come to rely on them on a regular basis. However as effective as acne products are at keeping the pimples away, you should never ever apply them to your sensitive penile skin.

Here’s why…

The faulty logic behind this method:

Though pearly penile papules and acne may look similar on the outside, they are very different on the inside. Simply put, pimples have an oily core and pearly penile papules have a fibrotic core.

Acne happens when the hair follicles on your skin become clogged with dirt and oil. Since this trapped oil has nowhere to go, it begins to pile up under the skin creating a little bump we call a zit or a pimple.

On the other hand, pearly penile papules form when your testosterone levels trigger your genes to form fibrotic clumps under the penile skin.

Notice how this has nothing to do with trapped oils or blocked pores. In fact, the penile surface doesn’t even have hair follicles that could get blocked, making acne treatments pointless.

The danger:

There are two main types of acne treatments – ones with salicylic acid and ones with benzoyl peroxide. While both are excellent for acne control, they are exceptionally dangerous for your penile skin. Let’s see why…

Acne treatments attempt to treat the problem in 3 main ways…

• They strip away the layer of dead cells on top of your skin (salicylic acid)
• They kill the bacteria that’s present around your acne (benzoyl peroxide)
• They remove oils (sebum), causing the skin to dry up and peel (benzoyl peroxide)

None of these things are either effective or desired when it comes to eliminating pearly penile papules:

• Since the penile surface lacks a layer of dead skin cells, trying to strip away the top layer can actually wear away the top lining of your glans. This is why you should never apply anything with salicylic acid on your papules.
• Since PPP is not caused by bacteria, unnecessarily exposing the penile mucosa to anti-bacterial substances can actually remove the beneficial bacteria that protect the penile surface. This is why anything with benzoyl peroxide can be harmful to the penis.
• Healthy penile tissue is always protected with a rich moisture barrier. Acne spot treatments can strip away this crucial defense mechanism from the glans, making it vulnerable to abrasions. Another reason why benzoyl peroxide is not meant to be applied to the penile tissue.

The fibrotic clumps responsible for pearly penile papules reside so deep under the surface that acne treatments just can’t get to them, let alone get rid of them.

Picking, scratching, squeezing, tweezing or popping them off

How it works:

When most PPP sufferers first encounter their papules, their initial instinct is to try and gently scratch off the papules like you would a scab. When this method fails to remove them, many turn to actively picking at their papules or squeezing them like one might a blackhead or a pimple.

Though this may seem like a harmless thing to do, there are many reasons why you should never try to manually scrape your papules.

The faulty logic behind this method:

One of the most deceptive features of pearly penile papules is that they are small and painless. Many PPP sufferers think that if they could simply squeeze them hard enough or scratch them deep enough they might be able to either empty their inner fluids or at least separate the papules clear off the underlying skin (like a scab).

• The fact is, there is no pus or any fluid inside your papules that could potentially be squeezed out – pearly penile papules have solid fibrotic clumps inside them.
• Your papules aren’t some kind of superficial scab resting on top of your penile skin that could somehow be scratched off – pearly penile papules are a living part of your penile flesh.

Picking, tweezing or scratching them is the equivalent of doing the same thing to your sensitive glans tissue. In fact, the effects of scratching your papules are far worse than you could imagine…

The danger:

Each one of your papules has blood vessels and nerves inside them. When you agitate your papules by picking at them, you instantly trigger an inflammatory response within the penile tissue. This inflammatory response tends to be especially aggressive because of the rich network of blood vessels inside. Also, because there are also many nerve endings on the glans (penile head), this inflammation can be exceptionally painful as well.

Even worse, the penile tissue is known to be extremely sensitive to inflammation-driven damage because it lacks any of the tough defensive features found on normal skin. This means even brief bouts of inflammation can lead to lasting penile tissue injury and scarring.

Bottom line, even if you get the urge to pick at your papules… don’t do it. It won’t work and will only make things worse.

Trying common over-the-counter moisturizers, creams, salves or oils

How it works:

Not all PPP sufferers impulsively jump onto aggressive treatment options to eliminate their papules. In fact, most realize how delicate their penile tissue really is and start out with some of the gentler solutions that are recommended online. These gentler solutions usually include natural oils and over-the-counter moisturizers that don’t seem to have many of the harsh side effects as some of the other treatment methods mentioned here.

However as you are about to see, just because a product is available over-the-counter or even natural, doesn’t mean it’s effective or even safe for your penile tissue…

Natural Oils – Safe but not always effective:

Indeed there are some oils that have a proven track record of safety when it comes to penile tissue applications. For example coconut oil, olive oil and castor oil have excellent moisturizing and anti-inflammatory properties. They are often recommended online for treating PPP because they tend to leave your papules feeling softer.

However, that’s the extent of their benefits.

Unfortunately, despite their moisturizing effects, these oils don’t improve the appearance of your papules because they don’t interact with the fibrotic core in the deeper layers (the main reason why your papules poke out).

In other words, these natural oils aren’t the magic cure they are often claimed to be. Yes, your papules will feel softer but they will still look the same.

Conventional over-the-counter creams, lotions and salves – Neither safe nor effective:

Keep in mind, the FDA’s OTC (over-the-counter) designation means that the product is safe only when used as directed and only meant to be used for its specific purpose.

For example, over-the-counter eye drops have been safely used for decades, yet ingesting even a small amount can cause dangerous drops in body temperature, breathing problems, huge fluctuations in blood pressure and can even put a person in a coma. In other words, a fairly safe over-the-counter product can prove toxic when not used as it’s meant to be.

The same dangers apply to OTC products that are not meant for penile tissue application (which is almost all of them)…

For example, most moisturizers, lotions and medicated gels have an alkaline pH to keep harmful bacteria and fungus from growing on them. However, our penile tissue constantly maintains a slightly acidic pH on its surface to keep harmful microbes away. The alkaline pH from these moisturizers, lotions and gels can have a severe disruptive effect on this protective acid mantle layer of the glans, increasing your chances of developing a penile infection.

Similarly, some websites recommend using over-the-counter steroid creams as part of their PPP treatment regimens to keep the inflammation down. However, what they don’t mention is that because your glans lacks the layer of dead skin cells on its surface (like normal skin), these steroids get readily absorbed into your blood stream through the exposed mucosa. This can suppress your adrenal function and even affect your overall hormonal balance.

Also, note how over-the-counter creams, gels and salves always say they are only meant for external use. Most PPP sufferers usually assume that because their papules are found on the outside of the body, they can safely apply these topical products on the penile surface. Remember, even though your glans (penile head) is found on the outside of your body, its composition is similar to the tissue found on the inside of your body.

As a rule of thumb, never apply anything to your papules that you can’t safely apply to the inside of your eyelids. This means most OTC creams, gels and salves should never be used on your papules because they are not made with your unique penile physiology in mind.

Essential oils

How it works:

Once most PPP sufferers realize that common oils and moisturizers don’t do much to get rid of their papules, they usually turn to a stronger class of oils called essential oils.

Essential oils are highly concentrated volatile extracts of plants. They are traditionally used in cosmetics, perfumes and sometimes even used to treat certain skin conditions (for example fungal infections). Since common oils such as olive oil and coconut oil are too gentle to get the job done, many assume that the more potent essential oils should do the trick and treat their papules.

Some sites advocate applying small amounts of these oils to your papules, allowing their astringent and caustic activity to disintegrate the papules over time. At first it almost makes sense. After all, these oils are extracted from natural sources and they have stronger chemical activity than the gentler oils, so it is possible that they might strike a good balance between safety and effectiveness.

The truth is, applying essential oils to your papules can be dangerous for both your penile tissue and your overall health. Here’s why…

The danger:

There are 4 main essential oils that are most commonly recommended for treating pearly penile papules:

• Tea tree oil
• Peppermint oil
• Thuja oil
• Eucalyptus oil

These particular oils are usually recommended for a few reasons:

• They have strong anti-microbial activity
• They have been traditionally used to treat various types of skin conditions
• Their volatile nature helps breakdown the skin’s top layer – so some argue that they should also be able to break down your papules from the outside-in

However, the one critical fact most PPP sufferers miss is that while these oils are certainly much more potent compared to coconut oil, olive oil and castor oil, they are way too harsh to be applied to the penile surface.

Some counter this argument by suggesting that you shoud dilute these oils with the gentler carrier oils (such as coconut oil) to allow them to exert their therapeutic effect without damaging the penile tissue. There are two problems with this approach:

• First, calibrating the perfect balance between the gentler carrier oil and the potent essential oil is very difficult because it requires trial and error based on your unique penile physiology and how severe your specific PPP situation is. This means every time you test any particular dilution of essential oil, you’re risking penile tissue injury.
• Secondly, this treatment method simply takes the wrong approach to treating pearly penile papules. It tries to get rid of your papules by breaking them down from the outside-in, instead of treating them from the inside-out. In other words, rather than protect the mucosal surface on top and safely breakdown the fibrotic clumps inside, essential oils take a brute force approach and simply eat away at the surface until they get to the deeper layer – injuring all the delicate tissue in-between. This is a sure way to permanently scar your glans.

Even if you were willing to accept these risks, you still can’t ignore one disturbing fact – toxins in these essential oils are easily absorbed through the exposed penile skin where they can begin to exert harmful effects on your body:

• Dangers of tea tree oil: New evidence shows that topical application of tea tree oil can cause hormonal disruption in males. Studies in the US have shown that it can have hormone-like activity which has lead to breast development in boys. Tea tree oil has also shown to increase the likelihood of developing treatment-resistant infections that don’t respond well to conventional drugs.
• Dangers of peppermint oil: While peppermint oil has shown to have a soothing effect on the respiratory and digestive system, its active ingredient (menthol) is known to cause severe penile tissue burning and irritation when applied repeatedly as PPP regimens suggest.
• Dangers of thuja oil: The active ingredient in thuja oil (thujone) is known to pass transdermally into the bloodstream and exert neurotoxic effects. It is also known to cause local stimulation of the immune system, which is the last thing you want on your penile tissue when treating your papules.
• Dangers of eucalyptus oil: This essential oil is so toxic that ingesting a mere 3.5ml can be fatal. Researchers in New Zealand published a study that showed topical application of this essential oil can even cause neurological problems.

Also keep in mind that many of these dangerous side effects have been reported from application of essential oils to normal skin which has an additional layer of dead skin cells to protect itself. The penile surface has no such defensive barrier. Applying these oils to the exposed penile surface makes essential oils especially dangerous because the harmful compounds in them can easily pass into your bloodstream and affect other organs.

Iodine Tincture

How it works:

This is another method that has been popularized by the same ebooks that also recommend the toothpaste method. It calls for soaking your papules in a 2% iodine tincture solution. Once the tincture evaporates, your papules are left dried and crusty. You are then asked to either physically scrub your dried papules with a nail filer or wash them with a facial scrub. Finally, you are told to apply a moisturizing agent such as aloe vera gel or coconut oil to soothe the irritation from the drying/scrubbing process.

The faulty logic behind this method:

This method was born out of the same flawed reasoning as the toothpaste method. Promoters of this method wrongly suggest that papules form from excess oils being trapped under the penile surface. They propose that drying your papules with iodine tincture gets rid of these excess oils and makes them easier to remove through physical scraping.

Here’s why this method is not only ineffective but also dangerous…

• Pearly penile papules are not formed by oils being trapped under the penile skin. Your penile head has no oil glands or any pores that could possibly be blocked. All you’re doing when you dry your penile surface with iodine tincture is stripping away its crucial moisture barrier and exposing it to possible infections and injury.
• Scrubbing your dried papules does not get rid of them. PPP is caused by clumps of fibrotic tissue that reside deep under your papules. Scrubbing the penile surface, as this method suggests, does not affect these fibrotic clumps underneath. If anything, it irritates the delicate surface and causes it to be inflamed or even injured.

Applying heat to your papules

How it works:

Indeed, heat has many therapeutic uses, such as easing muscular pain and healing tissue injuries. Heat is even used to treat skin conditions like treating boils and acne. It’s no wonder that if you visit any online forum discussing PPP treatments, you are bound to find advice that suggests applying heat to your papules by either soaking them in warm water or using warm compresses.

The faulty logic behind this method:

The main reason why people suggest this method is because it seems safe and also appears to work well on acne and boils. Since pearly penile papules look similar to acne or small boils, many assume that the same treatment method should work on them as well.

It doesn’t work and here’s why…

Both boils and acne have dirt, oils and pus inside them. The application of heat often helps neutralize the bacteria under the skin and helps clear out the toxins by improving blood flow to the affected area.

Pearly penile papules on the other hand have no pus, bacteria or toxins inside them so heating them has no beneficial effect. What they do have inside them are small fibrotic clumps that don’t react to warm compresses at all.

Keep in mind that these fibrotic clumps are so tough that it would take temperatures of close to 200 °F (about 100° Celsius) to break them down. At that high of a temperature you will have burned through the penile surface long before you see any breakdown in the fibrotic clumps under your papules.

In other words, using heat is simply not a practical way to get rid of pearly penile papules.

The danger:

Remember, penile skin is very similar to the tissue inside our mouth. Its outer surface is composed of an exposed epithelium that lacks the layer of dead skin cells found on normal skin. This means it can be easily injured, especially by heat.

Think about it… How many times have you grabbed a cup of coffee that felt ok to the touch but ended up being too hot for your tongue? It is just as easy to burn your glans (penile head) using heat that seems safe to the touch.

Needling

How it works:

This method calls for using small needles to poke holes into the individual papules in an effort to treat them. In some cases, the PPP sufferer is even told to use hot needles to increase the effectiveness of the method.

People that suggest this method believe that puncturing a papule is similar to having a boil lanced. They assume that draining a papule should allow it to collapse and disappear. This reasoning has no scientific basis. In fact, needling your papules is by far one of the most harmful and painful things you could do to your penile tissue.

Let’s take a look at why this method doesn’t work…

The faulty logic behind this method:

There are 3 main reasons why some mistakenly think poking sharp needles into pearly penile papules helps get rid of them:

• Microneedling works on wrinkles, so why not try it on papules? – Cosmeticians sometimes use very small gauge needles to poke holes into wrinkled skin to help tighten it. This method works by causing slight injury in the deeper layers of the skin which stimulates collagen production, which in-turn causes the skin to tighten.
  
  Some people hypothesize that using microneedles to stimulate collagen under the papules should help them tighten and disappear. However, it does no such thing. Your penile papules protrude out not from a lack of collagen but from having too much fibrotic tissue inside them. Unless you can somehow get rid of these fibrotic clumps safely, the papules will remain visible. Needling your papules does not get rid of the fibrotic clumps under your papules.
• How about using needles to drain the fluids out of papules? – This is another common misconception that has lead so many PPP sufferers to injure themselves. Indeed, when a doctor lances a boil or uses a syringe to drain cystic acne, the raised skin deflates from the emptying of the inner fluids. However, when it comes to pearly penile papules, there’s no such fluid inside them that needs to be drained. No pus, oil, dirt or bacteria.
  
  This is why puncturing your papules does not cause any kind of deflation. If anything, it causes the papule to swell even further.
• And what about using the needle to physically remove the fibrotic clumps under your papules? – Some proponents of the needling method suggest that since it is the fibrotic clumps under the papules that are the true reason they bulge out, all one needs to do is prod in deep enough and excavate these clumps like one removes a lodged splinter.
  
  One critical fact that this thinking ignores is that these fibrotic clumps aren’t just free floating inside your papules. They are wrapped in delicate blood vessels and sensitive nerves. No amount of careful needle prodding can prevent damage to these blood vessels and nerves. To do this to a single papule would be a risky task, the fact that the promoters of this method expect you to somehow needle all your papules shows this method is not based on any sound reasoning.

The danger:

When it comes to the severity of risk, needling is probably the most dangerous method mentioned so far. Keep in mind, because our glans (penile head) lacks the protective layer of dead skin cells on top (like normal skin), our body maintains a higher level of immune system surveillance on its surface. This means all it takes is the smallest perceived threat for the penile tissue to launch an aggressive immune response. That often means acute inflammation.

The act of introducing a foreign object into the papule not only instantly triggers an immune attack, it carries with it the serious risk of developing an infection, causing extensive tissue damage and even a permanent scarring of your penis.

Using household chemicals

How it works:

Nothing shows the true desperation most PPP sufferers feel about their condition than the extreme lengths to which many are willing to go to get rid of their papules.

Each year there are numerous reports of people ending up in emergency rooms from using strong household chemicals in desperate attempts to treat their pearly penile papules. These chemicals often include things like:

• Chlorine
• Ammonia
• Bleach
• Oven cleaner
• Laundry detergent

…and other substances normally found under the kitchen sink.

Before you even consider trying any of these substances (even once), please take a look at how devastating the effects of applying them to your penis can be…

The faulty logic behind this method

To be honest, this method is based more on sheer intuition than any compelling logic. People that attempt to treat their papules with household chemicals don’t do it because it works, they do it because they are truly desperate. It says a lot about the devastation that PPP causes in the sufferer’s life when he is willing to try absolutely anything to get rid of his papules no matter what the risk.

Part of the reason why people even try such a dangerous approach is because there are so many remedies purported online as PPP cures. Usually when a sufferer goes through the exhaustive process of trying one remedy after another without seeing any results, they are often left in a state of absolute hopelessness.

With every treatment attempt come new hopes of a better life and with each failure those hopes are shattered, leaving the sufferer that much more disappointed.

Finally in a state of utter despair, many take matters into their own hands and start believing that the only way to treat their problem is to do something drastic. As a result they often turn to the strongest substances they can find in their vicinity, which usually turns out to be household chemicals. Many assume that these chemicals should theoretically be strong enough to overcome the persistent nature of penile papules and break them down. The hope here is that when the penile tissue finally heals, the papules just won’t be there.

The fact is, applying any of these chemicals to your penile tissue can lead to damage that lasts you a lifetime. It’s true – pearly penile papules are quite resilient and don’t respond to most remedies, but it is absolutely wrong to assume that the solution is to try harsher chemicals.

Here’s why…

The danger:

What most PPP sufferers that try this method don’t realize is that household chemicals are designed for one purpose – to physically breakdown and remove organic matter (stains, dirt, bacteria) from inorganic matter (dishes, kitchen counter, floor). Their function is to literally destroy organic substances by using harsh chemicals. Human tissue is organic matter and an extremely fragile one at that.

The very function of household chemicals requires that it damage things like human tissue. If that’s not reason enough to never expose your sensitive penile tissue to them, here are 3 reasons why household chemicals are the last thing you should ever apply to your papules:

1. Their extremely high pH can cause instant penile tissue damage – Step into ocean water for a little while and your penile skin begins to burn slightly while your glans (penile head) is left dried up for some time. That’s because ocean water typically has a pH of about 8, which means it’s 10 times more alkaline than tap water. Now compare that to any of the common household chemicals: For example, bleach has a pH of about 13. That means it is a million times more alkaline than tap water (pH is a logarithmic scale).
   
   Since our body maintains a slightly acidic pH on the penile surface to keep harmful bacteria from growing, it is easy to see why applying something so alkaline can wreak havoc on its physiology.
2. These chemicals are carcinogenic – Whether it is chlorine or ammonia or even window cleaner, studies have shown that all these common household chemicals contain compounds that are known carcinogens. These compounds include things such as parabens, phthalates, BPA, cyclosiloxanes, etc., all of which can increase your chances of developing penile cancer through direct exposure.
3. They can cause severe chemical burns to your penis – The chemicals found in household cleaners all have strong caustic properties. This is by design because that’s exactly what helps them get rid of dirt, stains, etc. Unfortunately this also means that a single application to your papules can leave your penis severely scarred and disable much of its function, including permanent loss of its sensation.

Bottom line, whatever you do, never try to eliminate your papules with progressively stronger substances. Curing pearly penile papules requires a fine balance between being gentle on the penile surface and tough on the fibrotic clumps deep inside.

Laser treatment or electrodessication

How it works:

These methods treat PPP through controlled destruction of your papules. They work by physically vaporizing individual papules using an energy source such as lasers or electricity.

The procedure to remove the papules is usually performed by a doctor who first determines how much energy to deliver into the papules and how deep to deliver this energy into the tissue.

Then the doctor applies an anesthetic cream on the glans and once the area is sufficiently numb he/she makes a pass over each papule, delivering a laser or electric pulse into it. With each pulse the doctor makes sure that the targeted papule is being burnt away. The procedure usually takes about half an hour and is mostly painless.

The patient is then given a soothing ointment to apply to the treated area since it tends to crust and scab over the course of a few weeks. A repeat visit is usually suggested after a month so that the tissue has had time to heal and the doctor can evaluate if further procedures are necessary.

Why these treatments aren’t as perfect as claimed:

Though these treatments are the result of sound science, they take a brute force approach to treating pearly penile papules. Yes, the fibrotic clumps found under your papules are quite tough but that doesn’t mean the right way to get rid of them is to bombard them with powerful lasers or electricity.

Remember, pearly penile papules are the result of a natural biochemical process that leads to fibrotic clumps forming under the penile skin. The absolute best way to get rid of your papules is to reverse this biochemical process naturally. That is the only reliable way to get a perfectly smooth glans because it solves the problem at a biochemical level. As you’re about to see, lasers and electrodessication don’t always clear out all the fibrotic clumps under your papules and when they do, they can end up causing more damage than necessary.

While laser treatments and electrodessication have certainly brought much needed scientific attention to a long ignored problem, far too often they are painted as perfect cures, which they are certainly not.

Let’s take a look at some of the serious issues with these treatments that are rarely discussed…

The biggest problems with these treatments:

Laser and electrodessication treatment have quickly become the gold standard for pearly penile papule removal. Doctor’s have even given demonstrations on national television emphasizing the effectiveness of these treatments. However, like any new therapy, the true risk and cost of the treatment is often revealed after the masses have tried it and shared their side of the story.

As we are now finding out, these treatments have many major issues that most patients are never made aware of:

• They can cause a permanent discoloration of your penile skin – When a doctor discharges a laser or electrical pulse into your papule, the pulse travels into the deeper layers where it effectively vaporizes the surrounding tissue. Unfortunately, besides destroying the fibrotic clumps in the deeper layers, these pulses often also damage specialized cells called melanocytes, which are responsible for skin pigmentation. Damage to these cells can cause the treated patch of penile skin to become lighter. This is called hypopigmentation and it is a known side effect of laser treatments and electrodessication.
  
  Hypopigmentation can leave your penile tissue looking odd with scattered white patches, so while your raised papules may be gone, you may now have to deal with a new cosmetic issue that has no available treatment.
• They won’t completely eliminate all your papules – As advanced as laser and electrodessication equipment is, it does not allow your doctor to perfectly target the fibrotic clumps under each papule. Your doctor has to take his best guess at what depth to send the laser or electric pulses into the tissue. If these pulses are discharged too deep, you risk penile tissue injury and if the pulses aren’t discharged deep enough,the fibrotic clumps under your papules remain intact.
  
  Inevitably, after the procedure is complete and the penile tissue has healed, most PPP sufferers find that many of their papules still remain fairly visible. What’s worse is that even properly treated papules often reveal small whitish dots at the site of the treatment.




• They don’t prevent new papules from forming – What most PPP sufferers don’t realize is that vaporizing a papule doesn’t prevent it from coming back.
  
  The biochemical process that causes pearly penile papules to form is driven by our genes and our testosterone level, both of which are not affected by laser treatments or electrodessication. In fact, the typical PPP sufferer will continue to see new papule growth well into old age, until a significant drop in testosterone production finally stops the fibrogenic process under the penile skin.
• They can dull penile sensations – Another issue with laser and electrodessication treatments is that while they effectively breakdown the fibrotic clumps inside your papules, they can also indiscriminately destroy any blood vessels and nerves that are in the vicinity of the fibrotic clumps. Since the nerves in this region of the penis are crucial for delicate tactile sensations and sexual arousal, any damage to them can leave part of your glans (penile head) permanently numb (especially around the outer edges).
• These procedures force you to sacrifice your privacy – Having your pearly penile papules treated at a doctor’s office is far from a private experience. For a problem of such an intimate nature, the act of going to a doctor’s office multiple times and having them examine your penis is quite an embarrassing experience in itself. This doesn’t even take into account the fact that any complication that results from the procedure may require you to go to another specialist (for example urologist) and require you to inform your friends or family.
• They are often not worth the expense – Doctors justify the high price of laser treatments and eletrodessication by claiming that they are the best PPP treatments available today. The truth is, the high cost of these procedures has nothing to do with their effectiveness and everything to do with the fact that it takes a trained medical professional close to half an hour to perform a procedure using an expensive piece of equipment. Another factor that most PPP sufferers rarely take into consideration is that most patients require multiple sessions to find satisfactory results. This means in most cases, your final cost of treatment can be many times what you were initially quoted.
  
  While there was certainly a time when these treatments were the best solution the market had to offer, the new generation of advanced topical products have completely revolutionized the way we treat pearly penile papules.
  
  These topical gels have now significantly brought down the cost of treating your papules, they allow you to do this in the privacy of your home, they work far better than any other treatment and they don’t have the side effects that are common with the more expensive treatments.

The biggest problem with laser and electrodessication treatments is that they force you to solve a complex problem within a 30 minute window of a doctor’s visit. When it comes to pearly penile papules, the best treatments are those that put you, the patient, in control. Since visual esthetics are so crucial to end results, no one will pay the keen attention your individual papules need during the treatment process as you will.

With topical gels, if a papule has regressed completely, you can stop treating it and if a papule is persistent, you can continue your therapy. This simply isn’t possible with laser treatments and electrodessication which would require you to keep going back for additional expensive sessions.

Not treating your papules at all

Far too often, the dangers and costs of traditional treatments often force most PPP sufferers to simply accept their condition and not treat it. However, as dangerous as trying the wrong treatment can be, not treating your papules can be just as devastating to your psychological, social and sexual life.

Surveys have revealed that the general public holds very inaccurate and negative views about pearly penile papules. These studies have even shown that simply accepting your papules as a natural part of your body or educating your partner (as many suggest) doesn’t really shield you from being judged or being treated unfairly.

The truth is, simply having pearly penile papules puts you at an enormous disadvantage and getting rid of them can make a huge difference in your life.

Remarkably, we’re currently in the midst of an exciting phase in PPP research. Our understanding of what causes pearly penile papules has grown by leaps and bounds and so has our knowledge of how to get rid of them safely and effectively. These new discoveries have lead to the development of a new class of advanced topical products that allow you to stimulate a natural regression of your papules at home without risking any side effects or spending a lot of money.

At the forefront of these advanced therapies is a new product called 3P Gel. It is the first product of its kind that uses a unique dual action therapy to naturally disperse the fibrotic clumps under your papules, leaving your penile surface perfectly smooth. Best of all, it has none of the side effects of the treatment methods discussed above.