Abstract
Intracavernosal injection therapy is a second-line therapeutic approach in the management of erectile dysfunction utilized when oral phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) inhibitors are found to be ineffective or not tolerated due to side effects. First introduced in the 1980s, they are commonly used as part of a penile rehabilitation program in men who have undergone radical pelvic surgery (prostatectomy, cystoprostatectomy). Intracavernosal injection therapy involves the direct injection of alprostadil, phentolamine, and papaverine separately or in combination into the corpus cavernosum of the penis. Appropriately training men in the use of intracavernosal injections will diminish potential complications of therapy, including priapism. Priapism may occur in men who self-adjust their dose or who are not closely monitored. It should be treated as a medical emergency requiring immediate evaluation and intervention.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Suggested Reading
Coombs PG, Heck M, Guhring P, Narus J, Mulhall JP. A review of outcomes of an intracavernosal injection therapy programme. BJU Int. 2012;110(11):1787–91.
Goldstein I. The hour lecture that changed sexual medicine—the Giles Brindley injection story. J Sex Med. 2012;9(2):337–42.
Hsiao W, Bennett N, Guhring P, Narus J, Mulhall JP. Satisfaction profiles in men using intracavernosal injection therapy. J Sex Med. 2011;8(2):512–17.
Mulhall JP, Levine LA, Junemann KP. Erection hardness: a unifying factor for defining response in the treatment of erectile dysfunction. Urology. 2006;68(3 Suppl):17–25.
Nelson CJ, Hsiao W, Balk E, Narus J, Tal R, Bennett NE, et al. Injection anxiety and pain in men using intracavernosal injection therapy after radical pelvic surgery. J Sex Med. 2013;10(10):2559–65.
Prabhu V, Alukal JP, Laze J, Makarov DV, Lepor H. Long-term satisfaction and predictors of use of intracorporeal injections for post-prostatectomy erectile dysfunction. J Urol. 2013;189(1):238–42.
Tal R, Mulhall JP. Intracavernosal injections and fibrosis: myth or reality? BJU Int. 2008;102(5):525–6.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2017 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Narus, J.B. (2017). Intracavernosal Injection Training. In: Mulhall, J., Jenkins, L. (eds) Atlas of Office Based Andrology Procedures. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-42178-0_17
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-42178-0_17
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-42176-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-42178-0
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)