ABSTRACT
Objective: To evaluate the clinical, etiological and therapeutical aspects of priapism
Patients and Methods: Sixty-three patients were retrospectively studied regarding their age, the time elapsed between onset of the condition and presentation at the hospital, their medical and surgical history, additional examinations such as blood count and hemoglobin electrophoresis, treatment modalities and outcome of treatment
Results: The mean age of the patients was 22, 4 years [range: 3-68 years]. The time elapsed between onset of the condition and presentation at the hospital ranged from 4 hours to 41 days. Two patients [3, 2%] presented about 6 hours after the onset of priapism, while 80, 9% presented more than 24 hours later. Hemoglobin electrophoresis revealed sickle-cell disease in 29 [46%] patients. In two patients, priapism occurred after intracavernous injection of vasoactive drugs. The patients were treated medically and/or surgically. Immediate penile flaccidity after treatment was obtained in 53 cases [84, 1%]. At a mean follow-up of 8 months 51 patients could be evaluated; 23 of them [45, 1%] reported a satisfactory erection. Fibrosis of the corpora cavernosa occurred in 24 [38.1%] patients
Conclusion: Priapism represents a urologic emergency which in Africa is commonly associated with sickle-cell disease. A timely and adequate treatment in our environment is rendered difficult due to the fact that most patients present very late. This situation can only be changed by an improvement of the socio-economic situation and a large-scale education of the population as well as the establishment of a larger number of specialized medical and health centers