Cavernosal artery peak systolic velocity among normal adults in Abuja, Nigeria: A Baseline parameter for sonographic diagnosis of vasculogenic erectile dysfunction

Abstract

Background: Erectile dysfunction is consistent inability to achieve and maintain erection of sufficient
rigidity for satisfactory sexual performance. It is well known that the hemodynamic function of the penis
correlates well with the peak systolic velocity (PSV) of the cavernosal artery (CA) which is the most reliable,
sensitive, and objective parameter used in evaluating the state of the erectile tissues of the penis. This
study was aimed at establishing the normal CA PSV in this environment, as it may differ from the values
among Americans, Caucasians, and Asians.
Materials and Methods: The study was conducted between July 2015 and January 2017, at the Department
of Radiology, Federal Medical Centre, Abuja. Twenty-nine consecutive patients referred by the urologist to
the radiology department of the aforementioned institution for penile ultrasound were evaluated using
triplex Doppler sonography with high-frequency linear array transducer. The penile scan was done before
and after intracavernosal injection of 10–20 µg prostaglandin E1. The waveforms of CAs were obtained
alternately using the angle of inclination ≤60°, and the PSV of the CA was documented at 5‑min interval,
from 5 to 40 min.
Results: PSV of CA varied between 26 and 104.4 cm/s (mean: 46.72 ± 16.21) among the entire research
participants. No significant discrepancy was noted between PSV of the right and left cavernosal arteries.
The PSV had a strong positive relationship with age (P = 0.002), with the highest values found among
those ≤30 years.
Conclusion: The mean PSV of cavernosal arteries established in this study is not significantly different from
the values obtained among Americans, Caucasians, and Asians, indicating that racial difference has no effect
on this important sonographic variable.