D-I-Y Penectomy
Posted: Fri May 09, 2008 11:59 am
Let me start off by saying that this is NOT a do-it-yourself guide. The Archive has frequent newcomers who arrive announcing that they want a penectomy as soon as possible. They want to learn immediately all they need to know to perform the surgery themselves. Or, they want instructions so that their boyfriend/girlfriend/lover can do it. Alternatively, they are looking for a cutter who will leap up and offer to perform an act, which can get him jailed for many years if anything goes wrong and the non-professional surgery comes to the attention of the authorities.
Instead, this post is designed to be a cautionary tale. One to which I can refer when necessary, rather than having to restate the same information over and over and over again in multiple threads.
That the question is asked at all indicates that people realize that a penectomy is VERY serious business. The penis is well supplied with veins and arteries. Any tiny error in removal can result in the loss of a massive amount of blood, leading to very serious (emergency room, if youre lucky) consequences. The penis is also very well supplied with nerves, damage to which can easily lead to shock again an emergency room situation, if youre lucky, death if youre not.
There are certainly regulars on the Eunuch Archive who have had a penectomy and who are happy with the results. An exploration of the BME (http://www.bmezine.com/) site will also find many who have had successful penectomies, and who are willing to show photographs of the results. What percentage ended up in emergency rooms is not indicated .
A quick look at some of the history of human penectomy can indicate clearly how serious the problems can be.
Certainly the castration of slave boys has been part of human culture for four millenia, from ancient Sumer up to the much too recent past. Free men and boys were also castrated in some times and places more often young boys than adult men. Most of these castrations were of the testicles alone, not including amputation of the penis.
Jan Hogendorn, an economist who has studied the financial aspects of the African slave trade, has done extraordinary research on the production of eunuchs for the Middle East market. (Hogendorn 2000) For the production of eunuchs, he has studied the differences over time and the variations across geographical regions within Africa. Most of these African eunuchs had their penises removed, as well as their testicles.
There were significant economic questions involved in the eunuch trade, as the slave merchants purchased young boys, arranged for their castration and transport to market, and then sold them for a profit. Too high a death rate would, of course, result in a financial loss if the selling price were too low. Too high a profit would invite competition from additional traders. Hogendorn devotes considerable space to the efficiency of the slave market.
Young boys before puberty were chosen for castration because their survival rate was much higher than was true of those who had reached puberty. Even so, the death rate from penectomy (by experts) in West Africa generally ranged between 50 and 80 percent. This is for places with well-documented prices for young slave boys and for eunuchs immediately after their successful castration. There are reports of death rates higher than 80%, but without clear prices for the boys before and after castration, they cannot be confirmed.
For East Africa, where the castrations took place in Christian monasteries, the death rate was much lower, at only 25 to 35%. The Christian monks performing the castrations might also have been eunuchs themselves (but with only their testicles removed), as part of a continuing tradtion in some branches of Christianity of castration to preserve celibacy. (see Hester 2005, who argues that the practice which began in the early church continued in East Africa well into the modern period)
For China, where eunuchs also had their penis, as well as their testicles, removed, the death rate seems to be lower yet. The Chinese had a firm grasp of human anatomy and were well aware of the need for cleanliness. Anesthesia, in the form of opium, was also used, as were styptics to reduce blood losss, though antibiotics had not yet been discovered. Few sources, however, even mention a death rate.
Mitamura (1970) writes of one incident in the early Ming Dynasty where the death rate was similar to that of castrations in the East African monasteries. After the military defeat of one Hmong tribe in southeastern China (c. 1440), 1,565 boys were castrated. Of these 329 (21%) died of the procedure (p. 54). By the late Qing Dynasty the death rate had been much reduced with castrations performed exclusively by specialists near the imperial palace. Matignon (1900) gives a death rate of 9 to 10% and Stent (1877) of about 5 to 10% in these carefully controlled situations with ample after care. And remember, these were professional surgeons, with ample experience, paid to castrate mostly young boys whose parents had decided that palace eunuch was their best career opportunity.
For the hijra of India and Pakistan, I have been able to find NO useful information on death rate. There are sensationalist accounts giving very high rates and unconfirmable inside accounts denying any deaths whatsoever. The closest that I have to a good statement is one by Serena Nanda (1999, p. 28) where she states, The hour just after the operation is considered to be the critical time during which the clients life or death is in the balance. This is the closest I have found, despite searching publications in the medical and legal literature as well as the anthropological and sociological. Since there are individual accounts of death after castration (and criminal prosecutions of those who took part in the castration), we know that it happens, just not how frequently.
Also, as we have seen from a few accounts here on the Eunuch Archive, the problem of the urethra healing shut, even with the best modern care, is a big one. One fellow, Dave, logs his problems at: http://www.daveshole.com/dickless.htm He wore a Foley catheter for 3 weeks, and that didn't help. Catheters are also the perfect inroad to infections, as well. So even if you don't bleed to death or die of shock, how do you keep the urethra open? Recurrent infections plagued the penectomized eunuchs of everywhere that we have records.
In summary: Self-penectomy is far too dangerous for any sane person to contemplate. Any complications of shock or massive blood loss could easily result in your being unable to dial 9-1-1 yourself for an ambulance to get you to the hospital. For an amateur penectomy with assistance, success is certainly possible, but the medical literature is filled with case studies of emergency room admissions where something has gone seriously wrong. The ambulance, emergency room services, surgical repair services, and required psychiatric admission and care are NOT covered by any medical insurance of which I am aware. Trying it carries a major risk of disaster.
If you are truly serious, a trip to Brazil or Thailand, with a properly certified surgeon working in a real hospital setting is probably the CHEAPEST way to go. Contemplating a D-I-Y job may be a great fantasy, but its far too dangerous to try to translate it into reality.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Hester, J. David (2005). Eunuchs and the Postgender Jesus: Matthew 19:12 and Transgressive Sexualities. Journal for the Study of the New Testament, vol. 28, No. 1, 1340.
Hogendorn, Jan S. (2000). The Location of the Manufacture of Eunuchs. IN: Slave Elites in the Middle East and Africa: A Comparative Study, edited by Miura Toru & John Edward Philips. London: Kegan Paul International, pp. 4168.
Matignon, Jean-Jacques (1900). Superstition, Crime et Misère en Chine. Lyon: A. Storck & Cie.
Mitamura, Taisuke (1970). Chinese Eunuchs: The Structure of Intimate Politics. Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Company.
Nanda, Serena (1999). Neither Man nor Woman: The Hijras of India. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company.
Stent, G. Carter (1877 ). Chinese Eunuchs. Journal of the North China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, n.s., no. 11, pp. 143-184.
Instead, this post is designed to be a cautionary tale. One to which I can refer when necessary, rather than having to restate the same information over and over and over again in multiple threads.
That the question is asked at all indicates that people realize that a penectomy is VERY serious business. The penis is well supplied with veins and arteries. Any tiny error in removal can result in the loss of a massive amount of blood, leading to very serious (emergency room, if youre lucky) consequences. The penis is also very well supplied with nerves, damage to which can easily lead to shock again an emergency room situation, if youre lucky, death if youre not.
There are certainly regulars on the Eunuch Archive who have had a penectomy and who are happy with the results. An exploration of the BME (http://www.bmezine.com/) site will also find many who have had successful penectomies, and who are willing to show photographs of the results. What percentage ended up in emergency rooms is not indicated .
A quick look at some of the history of human penectomy can indicate clearly how serious the problems can be.
Certainly the castration of slave boys has been part of human culture for four millenia, from ancient Sumer up to the much too recent past. Free men and boys were also castrated in some times and places more often young boys than adult men. Most of these castrations were of the testicles alone, not including amputation of the penis.
Jan Hogendorn, an economist who has studied the financial aspects of the African slave trade, has done extraordinary research on the production of eunuchs for the Middle East market. (Hogendorn 2000) For the production of eunuchs, he has studied the differences over time and the variations across geographical regions within Africa. Most of these African eunuchs had their penises removed, as well as their testicles.
There were significant economic questions involved in the eunuch trade, as the slave merchants purchased young boys, arranged for their castration and transport to market, and then sold them for a profit. Too high a death rate would, of course, result in a financial loss if the selling price were too low. Too high a profit would invite competition from additional traders. Hogendorn devotes considerable space to the efficiency of the slave market.
Young boys before puberty were chosen for castration because their survival rate was much higher than was true of those who had reached puberty. Even so, the death rate from penectomy (by experts) in West Africa generally ranged between 50 and 80 percent. This is for places with well-documented prices for young slave boys and for eunuchs immediately after their successful castration. There are reports of death rates higher than 80%, but without clear prices for the boys before and after castration, they cannot be confirmed.
For East Africa, where the castrations took place in Christian monasteries, the death rate was much lower, at only 25 to 35%. The Christian monks performing the castrations might also have been eunuchs themselves (but with only their testicles removed), as part of a continuing tradtion in some branches of Christianity of castration to preserve celibacy. (see Hester 2005, who argues that the practice which began in the early church continued in East Africa well into the modern period)
For China, where eunuchs also had their penis, as well as their testicles, removed, the death rate seems to be lower yet. The Chinese had a firm grasp of human anatomy and were well aware of the need for cleanliness. Anesthesia, in the form of opium, was also used, as were styptics to reduce blood losss, though antibiotics had not yet been discovered. Few sources, however, even mention a death rate.
Mitamura (1970) writes of one incident in the early Ming Dynasty where the death rate was similar to that of castrations in the East African monasteries. After the military defeat of one Hmong tribe in southeastern China (c. 1440), 1,565 boys were castrated. Of these 329 (21%) died of the procedure (p. 54). By the late Qing Dynasty the death rate had been much reduced with castrations performed exclusively by specialists near the imperial palace. Matignon (1900) gives a death rate of 9 to 10% and Stent (1877) of about 5 to 10% in these carefully controlled situations with ample after care. And remember, these were professional surgeons, with ample experience, paid to castrate mostly young boys whose parents had decided that palace eunuch was their best career opportunity.
For the hijra of India and Pakistan, I have been able to find NO useful information on death rate. There are sensationalist accounts giving very high rates and unconfirmable inside accounts denying any deaths whatsoever. The closest that I have to a good statement is one by Serena Nanda (1999, p. 28) where she states, The hour just after the operation is considered to be the critical time during which the clients life or death is in the balance. This is the closest I have found, despite searching publications in the medical and legal literature as well as the anthropological and sociological. Since there are individual accounts of death after castration (and criminal prosecutions of those who took part in the castration), we know that it happens, just not how frequently.
Also, as we have seen from a few accounts here on the Eunuch Archive, the problem of the urethra healing shut, even with the best modern care, is a big one. One fellow, Dave, logs his problems at: http://www.daveshole.com/dickless.htm He wore a Foley catheter for 3 weeks, and that didn't help. Catheters are also the perfect inroad to infections, as well. So even if you don't bleed to death or die of shock, how do you keep the urethra open? Recurrent infections plagued the penectomized eunuchs of everywhere that we have records.
In summary: Self-penectomy is far too dangerous for any sane person to contemplate. Any complications of shock or massive blood loss could easily result in your being unable to dial 9-1-1 yourself for an ambulance to get you to the hospital. For an amateur penectomy with assistance, success is certainly possible, but the medical literature is filled with case studies of emergency room admissions where something has gone seriously wrong. The ambulance, emergency room services, surgical repair services, and required psychiatric admission and care are NOT covered by any medical insurance of which I am aware. Trying it carries a major risk of disaster.
If you are truly serious, a trip to Brazil or Thailand, with a properly certified surgeon working in a real hospital setting is probably the CHEAPEST way to go. Contemplating a D-I-Y job may be a great fantasy, but its far too dangerous to try to translate it into reality.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Hester, J. David (2005). Eunuchs and the Postgender Jesus: Matthew 19:12 and Transgressive Sexualities. Journal for the Study of the New Testament, vol. 28, No. 1, 1340.
Hogendorn, Jan S. (2000). The Location of the Manufacture of Eunuchs. IN: Slave Elites in the Middle East and Africa: A Comparative Study, edited by Miura Toru & John Edward Philips. London: Kegan Paul International, pp. 4168.
Matignon, Jean-Jacques (1900). Superstition, Crime et Misère en Chine. Lyon: A. Storck & Cie.
Mitamura, Taisuke (1970). Chinese Eunuchs: The Structure of Intimate Politics. Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Company.
Nanda, Serena (1999). Neither Man nor Woman: The Hijras of India. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Publishing Company.
Stent, G. Carter (1877 ). Chinese Eunuchs. Journal of the North China Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, n.s., no. 11, pp. 143-184.