[Assessment of autonomic nervous function in impotence using sweat response induced by intradermal injection of...

It is important to evaluate the autonomic nervous function which controls penile erection. One method utilizes intradermal injection of acetylcholine to produce localized sweat response. The sweat response depends on the peripheral autonomic nervous supply. Therefore, the response can be used to detect peripheral autonomic nervous dysfunction. We tried to evaluate the peripheral autonomic dysfunction in 29 impotence using a sweat spots test. We classified the 29 impotence into 6 groups with standard tests such as the papaverine test, nocturnal penile tumescence monitoring, recordings of bulbocavernous reflex, etc. The results were as follows: psychogenic IMP; 8, neurogenic IMP; 8, arterial insufficiency; 5, corporeal veno-occlusive insufficiency; 6 neurogenic with arterial insufficiency; 1, and neurogenic with corporeal veno-occlusive insufficiency; 1. The score of sweat spots test was 25.3 +/- 10.9, being in normal, nineteen severe in 3 and slightly abnormal in 7. Many cases of severe and slightly abnormal patients were DM patients classified into neurogenic IMP. We found 2 cases that were not detected by bulbocavernous reflex but found to be abnormal by sweat spots test. Therefore we conclude that this test effective to detect the autonomic nervous dysfunction in impotence.