AND GENITAL, SYMPATHETIC SKIN POTENTIALS IN FLACCID AND ERECTILE PENILE STATES IN NORMAL POTENT MEN AND PATIENTS WITH PREMATURE EJACULATION

Sympathetic skin potentials were recorded from the hand and genital re gion in 14 normal potent men and 18 patients with premature ejaculatio ns. With the penis flaccid the sympathetic skin potentials obtained di d not differ significantly in both groups. However, when erection was induced by 50 mg. intracavernous papaverine injection, the genital sym pathetic skin potentials were significantly suppressed in all but 3 no rmal men, while the hand potentials did not change. In subjects with p remature ejaculation genital and hand sympathetic skin potentials were suppressed during erection as a generalized bodily reaction except in 1 patient. This phenomenon may indicate that the specific and regiona l suppression of genital sympathetic activity during erection could no t be properly adjusted in patients with premature ejaculation.