Updated relationship between sleep and erectile function / 中华男科学杂志

ABSTRACT

Penile erection (PE) is a physiological phenomenon involving complex mechanisms. PE may occur as reactive erections, psychogenic erections in the conscious state and spontaneous erections during the sleep. Sleep-related PE refers to the erections occurring spontaneously during the sleep with rapid eye movement. Studies have shown a correlation between sleep and PE as well as between sleep disorders and erectile dysfunction but not yet revealed the exact mechanisms. This paper updates the relationship between sleep and erectile function.