A 50-year-old man is recovering in an Italian hospital after a 24 drug-fueled sex marathon left him with septic shock.
The German tourist was admitted to the Misericordia Hospital in Grosseto, Italy, on May 11 and is still in a serious condition after a weak of intensive care. According to local media, the septic shock has likely caused cell death in the man's penis and scrotum, and he may even be facing genital amputation.
The incident took place in the town of Castel del Piano, a popular tourist destination in Tuscany, Italy. According to la Repubblica, the man and his wife had taken MDMA to "help them perform." However, engaging in so-called "chemsex" can have serious health consequences, as the unfortunate couple soon found out.
According to the National Library of Health (NLH), numerous studies have shown that MDMA, also known as ecstasy, can significantly suppress the immune system, making users more vulnerable to infections. This may be exacerbated by excessive sex as prolonged sexual activity can cause penile abrasions, providing a direct route for infections to enter into the bloodstream.
The bulk of research into the effects of drug use and excessive sex has been focused on sexually transmitted infections (STI) between men who have sex with men. However, the immunosuppressive effects of MDMA makes users more susceptible to all kinds of infections, and its use is definitely not restricted to same-sex couples.
In some cases, infections can cause the immune system to over-react and release chemicals that harm the patient's own cells, resulting in sepsis. This can cause tissue damage, organ failure and even death.
As sepsis progresses, it can result in abnormal blood clotting and widening of the patient's blood vessels, decreasing blood pressure and reducing blood flow to vital organs. If the blood pressure drops too low, the patient may go into septic shock, which can be life threatening.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), over 1.7 million Americans develop sepsis every year, with an estimated 350,000 fatalities. As a result, sepsis is a leading cause of hospital mortality in the United States, with a third of hospital deaths resulting from sepsis during hospitalization.
As a result of sepsis-induced tissue damage, many patients who survive sepsis must undergo life-altering amputations, which account for 10 percent of the 1.6 million amputations that take place in the U.S. every year, according to the Sepsis Alliance.
While the German tourist's prognosis remains confidential, the cell death in his penis may have permanently impaired his ability to get an erection and, according to la Repubblica, his genitals may need to be amputated.
Newsweek reached out to the hospital group via email for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Pandora Dewan is a Senior Science Reporter at Newsweek based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on science, health ... Read more
