Anatomic and Functional Outcome Following Distal Shunt and Tunneling for Treatment Ischemic Priapism: A Single-Center Experience.

BACKGROUND: Ischemic priapism (IP) is a urologic emergency that requires early intervention. The main aim of IP treatment is to relieve the cavernosal pressure and provide erectile function. AIM: The aim of this study was to determine the correlation between preoperative risk factors (patient's age, duration of priapism, preoperative erectile function) and postoperative erectile dysfunction (ED). METHODS: This retrospective study consisted of 25 patients diagnosed with refractory IP between 2009-2017. The diagnosis of IP was confirmed by medical history, physical examination, and cavernosal blood gas analysis. All of the patients underwent the T-shunt procedure ± tunneling after a failed initial intervention. RESULTS: The mean age at the time of the IP diagnosis was 46.84 years (range 23-77). The average follow-up time of the study population was 40.4 months (range 3-114), and the median time from the occurrence of IP to surgery was 58 hours (range 24-240). In all cases, rapid resolution of the erection was achieved with the T-shunt ± tunneling procedure. In 1 patient, priapism recurred after 12 hours. Postoperative ED was reported by 16 (84.21%) patients, with degrees of mild, mild to moderate, and severe in 6, 1, and 9 of these cases, respectively. During the follow-up, the mean International Index of Erectile Function-5 (IIEF-5) score was 12.68 (range 5-23). Only 3 (15.78%) patients achieved successful sexual intercourse without any treatment. 6 (31.5%) patients required the aid of phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors, and 1 (5.26%) patient required the aid of a vacuum erection device. The 9 (47.36%) patients with severe ED failed to respond to medical treatment and were considered candidates for a penile implant. According to Kendall's tau-b correlation coefficient analysis, there was a positive correlation between the preoperative and postoperative IIEF-5 scores (P = .005), whereas the patient's age and duration of priapism were negatively correlated with the postoperative IIEF-5 score (P = .016 and P = .046, respectively). CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Treatment options of IP should be discussed with patients in terms of both preoperative erectile function and the duration of priapism. STRENGTHS & LIMITATIONS: The small sample size and retrospective nature of this study were the main limitations. CONCLUSIONS: Despite high success and low complication rates of T-shunt surgery, the rate of undisturbed erectile function is only 14.6%. The patient's age, the existence of preoperative ED, and the duration of priapism are associated with postoperative IIEF-5 scores. Ortaç M, Çevik G, Akdere H, et al. Anatomic and Functional Outcome Following Distal Shunt and Tunneling for Treatment Ischemic Priapism: A Single-Center Experience. J Sex Med 2019;16:1290-1296.