Man injected his own semen into his arm for 18 months to 'treat' back pain

The man injected semen into his arm to ease pain in his back

Darragh McDonagh

January 17 2019 02:30 AM

A 33-YEAR-OLD man required medical treatment at a Dublin hospital after repeatedly injecting himself with his own semen in a bizarre attempt to treat his long-standing lower-back pain.

The patient developed a subcutaneous abscess on his right arm, where he had been injecting himself with semen on a monthly basis for 18 months.

An intravenous antimicrobial drip to treat the man's unusual condition was started immediately, but he opted to discharge himself without allowing doctors to drain the "local collection".

The case was revealed in a report published in the 'Irish Medical Journal', which was titled 'Semenly Harmless Back Pain: An Unusual Presentation of a Subcutaneous Abscess'.

It prompted the author of the report, Dr Lisa Dunne, of Adelaide and Meath Hospital, in Tallaght, to conduct a wide review for information regarding the use of semen for the treatment of back pain.

She concluded there were no other reported cases of intravenous semen injection to be found anywhere in medical literature, and a search of the internet found no source that recommended this as a cure.

"This is the first reported case of semen injection for use as a medical treatment," she concluded.

The patient had presented complaining of sudden and severe lower-back pain. He reported having lifted a heavy object three days before.

A physical examination of his limbs identified a small, red papule on his right arm. He revealed at this stage that he had been injecting his own semen as an "innovative" method of treating back pain. He had been doing this without any medical advice.