Electrical activity of the corpus cavernosum in patients with corporal veno-occlusive dysfunction.

Abstract

To determine whether the pattern of discoordination (an increase in electrical activity of the corpus cavernosum after an intracavernous injection with papaverine and which results in the contraction of the cavernous smooth muscles instead of relaxation) is an aetiological factor in veno-occlusive dysfunction (VOD). Electromyography of the corpus cavernosum was performed before and after an intracavernous injection with 60 mg papaverine in 45 patients diagnosed as having venogenic erectile dysfunction by colour Doppler ultrasonic flowmetry and dynamic infusion cavernosometry and cavernosography. Cavernosometric values were compared in patients with and with no pattern of discoordination. A pattern of discoordination occurred in 14 patients (31%). There were significant differences in the cavernosometric values of patients with and with no discoordination. A poor response to papaverine and greater venous leakage were observed in the patients showing discoordination. The pattern of discoordination diagnosed by electromyography after injection with papaverine may explain some aspects of VOD and highlights the importance of performing electromyography of the corpus cavernosum in the diagnostic evaluation of VOD.