Interventional management of low-flow priapism: A protocol proposal

Abstract

Priapism is an involuntary prolonged erection that lasts for more than 4 h. Although several interventions have been proposed to manage the condition, these strategies are based on expert panel opinions, and little evidence exists regarding prognosis and outcomes. To synthetize information about interventions to treat priapism and to make evidence-based recommendations, we performed a literature search of Medline via Ovid, Scopus (including Embase) and Lilacs from 1980 to the current day with the following keywords: ischemic priapism, erectile function, drainage, and shunt. The length of the ischemic priapism is an important variable for the prognosis because of the pathophysiology of this condition. Here, we propose a step-by-step approach based on the time and invasiveness of the intervention. However, it is important to note that we could not find any clinical trial that supports this approach, and more research is needed for the future statements.

Keywords

• General urology
• operative treatments
• penis
• priapism