Impotent man who inserted steel rod into his manhood almost dies after it shoots backwards into bladder

China: A man who tried to improve his sex life by sticking a steel rod down his penis almost died when it shot into his bladder during intercourse.

Kang Niu, 52, inserted the 13-centimetre long steel rod into his penis after he began having problems getting an erection.

He told medics he felt this was the reason he was struggling to find and keep a girlfriend.

As a result he came up with the idea of a steel reinforcement using a metal rod with a narrow tube down the middle.

A spokesman at Second Hospital in the Chinese city of Hengyang said: "He believed that using this would give him a prolonged sexual experience."

But the first time he tried it the rod shot backwards inside him and stabbed his bladder. Despite being in agony,  he reportedly said nothing for months, hoping that he would eventually be able to pass the rod back out again.

Eventually as the pain increased he turned up at the hospital where doctors carried out an x-ray and discovered the cause of the pain.

They said it was a relatively simple operation to remove the steel rod from inside the man, but they did not say whether it had caused any long-term damage to his internal organs.