I am tempted to say that you know 5 pretty stupid guys.
But I will be kind, because I know that too many guys can be ignorant, uneducated, or reckless with their dosages using TriMix/Caverject/alprostadil/PGE-1. Too many guys start out using way more TriMix than they need, and run into problems with priapism. Wannabe pornstars who end up panicked, embarrassed, and running into the ER begging for help, when they should have done a little research ahead of time.
Start low, slow, and cautiously, and you shouldn't have any problems, or at least any problems that time and plenty of sex and jerking off won't solve. Taking Sudafed or Benadryl or ephedrine will help make the problem go away quicker, as will ice baths and exercise, and if necessary you can inject phenylephrine as the "antidote" to priapism, which urologists will often prescribe along with the TriMix, just in case.
Failing all of that, usual treatment is to drain 20-30ml blood from the penis using a 18 or even 16 gauge needle (shudder!) until the erection goes down. I assume that's what you mean when you say "surgically opened." It's just draining blood from the erect penis using a big needle, until it isn't erect anymore.
It's like anything else in this game. Keep your doses low, take reasonable precautions, increase only when necessary, and you can go a long way and have a lot of fun in the process.
Shotgun way too much (of practically anything) and you are eventually in for a trip to the ER and a world of hurt. This applies to just about everything.
Personally, I used to be a fetish model and was involved in the whole fetish scene, with many partners, and have done some work in porn. I have used TriMix/Caverject/alprostadil/PGE-1 literally hundreds of times over the last 16 years, and I have never had any problem with priapism that couldn't be resolved by just having more sex or jerking off again and again until the erection goes away.
I will note that over time, with repeated use, a person may require heavier doses to get the same result, whether because of scarring or endothelial damage or for whatever reason. We all get older and things unfortunately don't work as well as they used to.
But I've had some of the greatest sexual experiences of my life using TriMix/PGE-1, and even though I can't enjoy those experiences as much now that I'm older and tied down with a wife and baby daughter, the memories are still there to keep me smiling. TriMix/PGE-1 has been a blessing in my life, and has allowed me to bless many women along the way as well.
I just got a fresh 5ml vial FedExed to me today on cold packs, so I am looking forward to more positive experiences soon.
Not an endorsement. Use or don't use at your own risk. Do whatever you need to do to be happy in this world. BE HAPPY. But educate yourself first, and be smart about it.
No opinion on the Shockwave/Gainswave thing. Most of what I've read on other forums has labeled it as a scam for desperate suckers with a lot of cash to throw away (my urologist was very derisive on the topic). But I am optimistic enough to hope that it works for some people, some of the time.
Caveat emptor. Per crucem ad lucem. Magnus es, Domine, et laudabilis valde. Magna virtus tua et sapientiae tuae non est numerus.
"Man, you know I done enjoyed things that kings and queens
Will never have
In fact, things kings and queens can't never get
And they don't even know about it
And good times?
I have had my fun
If I never get well no more
I have had my fun
If I never get well no more
Whoa, my health is fadin'
Oh yes, I'm goin' down slow
Now look here, I did not say, I was a millionaire
But I said, I have spent more money than a millionaire
'Cause if I had kept all of the money I had already spent
I would've been a millionaire a long time ago
And women, well, googly moogly
Please write my mama
Tell her the shape I'm in
Please write old mother
Tell her the shape I'm in
Tell her pray for me
Forgive me for my sins"
-- "Goin' Down Slow", St Louis Jimmy Oden, Willie Dixon, Howlin' Wolf