Study on induction of erection by low-frequency electrical stimulation

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We investigated a method to induce erection by low-frequency electrical stimulation and measure the nerve conduction time.First, bulbo-cavernosus reflex latency time (BCR-L) determined by bulbocavernosus-evoked electromyography, which is now performed as a neurological test of impotence was compared with the clinical results of 343 patients with impotence. The Results showed that young patients capable of erection had a prolonged BCR-L,while those with apparent injury of the erection-related nerve had a BCR-L within normal limits, clearly indicating a discrepancy between the results of BCR-L and the clinical findings. Therefore, we attempted to induce erection and measure the time of conduction to the dorsal penile nerve using a low frequency electrical stimulating electrode. We also attempted to induce erection and measure the spinal-dorsal penile nerve conduction time by the extradural spinal cord electrical stimulation applied in the field of anesthesiology for pain treatment. The s … More ubject was an impotence patients with spasmodic pain of the lower extremities and urinary disturbance caused by a severe electrical shock. Since this patient had impaired spinal-dorsal nerve conduction, erection could not be induced by electrical stimulation. However, stimulation of the spinal nerve improved spasmodic pain of the lower extremities and urinary disturbance. We are planning to modify thismethod for further application to the treatment of impotence. As stated above, since this method facilitates the measurement of changes in surface potential of the dorsal penile nerve by spinal stimulation, we attempted to measure changes in the surface potential of the dorsal penile nerve by cutaneous low frequency sacral cord electrical stimulation in 22 impotence patients. As a results, change in the surface potential of the dorsal nerve by sacral cord electrical stimulation were successfully measured in 17 out of 22 patients. The mean sacral-dorsal nerve conduction time was 7.9 msec, which almost corresponds to the data reported by other investigators. The present method is concidered to be an optimal method for easy use at the outpatient clinic, because it uses percutaneous electrical stimulation and is, therefore, noninvasive. Less