Management of Priapism in the Emergency Department

Patients presenting to the emergency department with priapism require immediate evaluation and treatment. Priapism is a urological emergency that carries the risk of erectile dysfunction if not managed in a timely manner. Therefore, it is important for providers to be able to identify and manage these patients emergently. Priapism has various causes, and knowing the difference between high-flow and low-flow priapism will help determine the appropriate patient management. Although the prevalence of priapism is thought to be low, there have been increasing reports over the years linked to new drugs used for the treatment of erectile dysfunction (Roghmann et al., 2013). For this reason, it is imperative that providers understand the etiology behind the different causes of priapism. Using a case of drug-induced priapism as an exemplar, this article discusses the epidemiology, etiology, and management of priapism conditions.