What Is the P-Shot, and What Does It Actually Do?

July 13, 2026

The P-Shot is a brand name for an injection of platelet-rich plasma, drawn from your own blood, into the penis. Mechanically it's simple: a clinician concentrates the platelets from your blood and injects them into penile tissue, aiming to improve blood flow, firmness, and sensation. What it does in practice is more modest than the advertising suggests, and the honest short answer is that the best controlled evidence to date has not shown it to outperform a placebo for erectile dysfunction.

The P-Shot is a brand name, and the treatment underneath it is PRP

The Priapus Shot is a trademarked protocol, usually shortened to the P-Shot. Strip the branding away and you're left with platelet-rich plasma, the same category of injection used on knees, scalps, and healing tendons. Blood comes out of your arm, a centrifuge spins it to concentrate the platelets, and that concentrate goes into specific areas of the penis.

Different clinics market it under different names. Allure Plastic Surgery offers it as the PRP Shot. The label on the door tells you nothing about the quality of the injection or the honesty of the person recommending it. The trademark is a marketing asset.

What does the research actually show about the P-Shot for erectile dysfunction?

This is the part most pages skip, so here it is plainly.

The American Urological Association, the body that writes the erectile dysfunction guideline American urologists follow, classifies platelet-rich plasma for erectile dysfunction as experimental, and advises that it be used for ED in the context of clinical trials.

The strongest test we have supports that caution. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial published in the Journal of Urology and presented at the 2023 AUA annual meeting found PRP injections to be safe, with efficacy similar to placebo in men with mild to moderate erectile dysfunction. Men who received the real injection improved. So did men who received the placebo, by a comparable amount.

Earlier studies did report improvement, and that is where the enthusiasm came from. Most of them had no placebo arm, which means they could not separate the effect of the platelets from the effect of being treated, watched, and encouraged.

The P-Shot is not an FDA-approved treatment for erectile dysfunction.

So what does it actually do? It's a safe, well-tolerated injection. Because the material is your own blood, allergic reaction and rejection are close to a non-issue. Some men report better firmness and sensation afterward. What the controlled evidence doesn't yet support is a promise that it will reliably restore erections. Any clinic that guarantees you a result is running ahead of the science, and you should treat that promise as information about the clinic.

Does the P-Shot make you bigger?

The marketing leans on this. The evidence does not support it. No controlled research establishes that platelet-rich plasma adds durable length or girth, and duration and magnitude of any size change are not what these studies were built to measure.

If size is the outcome you actually want, you want a different conversation. Fat transfer, dermal fillers, ligament release, and pubic liposuction are procedures that are built to change size, and they work by different mechanisms, with different recoveries, costs, and tradeoffs. Being told clearly which of those two conversations you're in is the most useful thing a consultation can give you.

What happens during the procedure, and does it hurt?

The sequence is short. Blood is drawn from your arm. A centrifuge separates the platelet-rich plasma from the rest of the blood. A numbing agent is applied, and the concentrated plasma is injected into specific areas of the penis.

At Allure Plastic Surgery, the PRP Shot runs about 15 minutes and does not require general anesthesia. Downtime is minimal, and most patients resume regular activities shortly after treatment. Mild swelling, bruising, or tenderness at the injection sites is common for a few days and typically settles on its own. Follow the post-procedure guidance your team gives you.

What does the P-Shot cost, and will insurance pay for it?

Insurance does not cover it. It is treated as an elective sexual wellness procedure, and because PRP is not an approved treatment for erectile dysfunction, there is no coverage pathway. Plan on paying out of pocket.

Prices vary widely by city and by clinic, and clinics frequently recommend more than one session. Before you commit, ask what the full course costs rather than the price of a single injection, because a per-session number can quietly become a multiple. At Allure Plastic Surgery, pricing is given during your confidential consultation, and financing through Affirm, Cherry, or CareCredit is available if you want to spread the cost over time.

How long do the results last?

Clinics quote a range, often somewhere around six months to a year, with repeat treatment recommended after that. Be aware of where that number comes from. Placebo-controlled data does not establish a specific duration, so a precise promise about how many months you will get is a marketing figure rather than a published one. A clinician who tells you honestly that duration is not well established is being straight with you.

Who is the P-Shot right for, and who should look elsewhere first?

Allure Plastic Surgery lists the PRP Shot as an option for men who want firmer erections and greater sensitivity, men who are no longer responding to erectile dysfunction medication, men with Peyronie's disease, and men dealing with an enlarged prostate or a history of prostate cancer.

Here's the counterweight that belongs in the same breath. Erectile dysfunction usually has a cause, and that cause is worth finding before you treat the symptom. Cardiovascular disease, diabetes, low testosterone, medication side effects, sleep problems, and anxiety all sit behind a large share of cases. ED can be an early warning sign of heart disease, which makes a proper workup genuinely valuable. There are also first-line treatments with strong evidence behind them, and starting with the proven route is a sensible place to begin.

A surgeon who tells you the P-Shot is unlikely to help you, and points you somewhere more useful, has just saved you money and time.

We determined that I was a good candidate for the body implants, but Dr. Heller was (to my gratitude) honest about the fact I wasn't an appropriate candidate for liposuction.

Stuart Waterman

The PRP Shot at Allure Plastic Surgery

Dr. Elliot Heller performs the male enhancement procedures at Allure Plastic Surgery himself, including the PRP Shot, at the Staten Island and Manhattan offices. Consultations are confidential, there is a private entrance, and virtual consultations are available if you would rather start the conversation from home.

What you should expect from that consultation is a candid read on whether this treatment fits your situation, what the evidence does and does not support for you specifically, and what the alternatives look like if the answer is something else.

Dr. Heller was very professional. Jackie and the team also was very helpful and made me feel comfortable and was able to answer my questions.

Eric Young

To talk it through, book a confidential consultation with Dr. Elliot Heller at Allure Plastic Surgery, or call (866) 477-2023.

P-Shot FAQ

Is the P-Shot safe?

Safety is the strongest part of its record. The injection uses your own platelets, so allergic reaction and rejection are very unlikely, and the placebo-controlled trial that found it no better than placebo did find it safe. The common side effects are bruising, swelling, and tenderness at the injection site.

How soon can I have sex after the P-Shot?

Most men are back to regular activities quickly, and any discomfort is usually mild and short-lived. Timing for sexual activity should come from the team that treated you, since it depends on how you respond.

Does the P-Shot treat Peyronie's disease?

Allure Plastic Surgery lists Peyronie's disease among the concerns the PRP Shot addresses. Research on PRP for Peyronie's is still early and limited, so bring it up directly at your consultation and ask what results are realistic for your case.

Is the P-Shot worth it?

That depends on what you want from it and how you weigh an unproven treatment. If you want a low-risk option and you understand the evidence is not settled, it is a reasonable thing to discuss. If you want a reliable fix for erectile dysfunction, or you want to change size, there are better-supported paths and you should ask about those instead.