# Penile Scintigraphy—A Diagnostic Method for Vasculogenic Erectile Dysfunction

## TL;DR

Penile scintigraphy is shown to be more effective than ultrasound in diagnosing blood flow-related erectile dysfunction.

## Contribution

Penile scintigraphy is demonstrated to have higher sensitivity and specificity than color Doppler ultrasonography for vasculogenic ED.

## Key findings

- Penile scintigraphy has 85.2% sensitivity and 83.3% specificity for detecting vasculogenic erectile dysfunction.
- Penile scintigraphy outperforms color Doppler ultrasonography in diagnosing ED related to blood flow issues.
- Combining scintigraphy with ultrasound improves diagnostic accuracy when ultrasound is less informative.

## Abstract

Background: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a disease whose occurrence is steadily increasing worldwide. This pathology is multifactorial and often combined with other diseases. ED of organic genesis in 50–80% of men is vasculogenic. Methods: A survey was conducted of 88 men (aged 44 to 62) who complained of erectile dysfunction. It consisted of a questionnaire administered according to the protocols “International Index of Erectile Function” and “Aging Male Screening”, and was followed by a color Doppler ultrasound (Logiq 9 ExpertGE with a 7 MHz linear transducer using B mode) and penile scintigraphy (single-photon emission computed tomography). The procedures were initially performed at rest, then during pharmacologically induced erection, which was achieved through the intake of phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitors. Patients who did not respond to pharmacological stimulation and had IIEF scores below 5–7 were offered surgical treatment—penile prosthesis followed by histological examination of the tissue of the corpus cavernosum. Statistical analysis was carried out using Microsoft Excel and STATISTICA 10.0 software. The Mann–Whitney U test was used to assess differences between quantitative variables, with the significance level set at p ≤ 0.05. Results: Penile scintigraphy shows high sensitivity (85.2%) and specificity (83.3%), outperforming color Doppler ultrasonography in detecting vasculogenic ED. Conclusion: Penile scintigraphy is demonstrated to be a highly informative method, allowing us to analyze the condition of the magistral and organ blood flow, as well as the microcirculatory bed of the cavernous bodies of the penis. This improves the effectiveness of this method in diagnosing various types of vasculogenic erectile dysfunction (ED), which opens opportunities for its use together with ultrasound examination when the latter is less informative.