Pathologic erections: historical, pathophysiological and clinical aspects

Penile erection; an indispensable phenomenon for reproduction and/or the sexlife of almost every man. However, the man whose nights of sleep get frequently disrupted due to painful nocturnal erections, the so called “sleep-related painful erections”, might prefer never to have an erection again. Remarkably, the erotic erections remain undisturbed. Nevertheless, a (sexual) realtionship can be seriously disturbed by the consequences of the sleep deprivation: stress, anxiety, absenteeism and feelings of despair. Only a single prolonged erection, that lasts beyond 4 hours and is called “priapism”, can even cause the penile corporal tissue to become completely necrotic and irreversibly devastated. This thesis describes the historical aspects, symptomatology, pathophysiology and an analysis of different forms of treatment. The aim was to gain attention for these poorly recognized pathologic forms of erection and get one step closer to an evidence-based treatment advise