Prevention of erection after penile surgery. A double-blind trial of intracavernous noradrenaline versus placebo.

To prevent nocturnal erections after penile surgery a randomized, double blind trial of nocturnal intracavernous infusion of noradrenaline (10 micrograms per hour) versus placebo in 20 patients was carried out. During infusion the corpus cavernosum pressure was continuously registered. The patients made a record of nocturnal erections and associated pain. The pressure registration confirmed total absence of erections in the noradrenaline group. In the placebo group half of the patients were devoid of nocturnal erections. No signs of ischaemia was seen, but in four patients receiving noradrenaline infusion was stopped due to pain. This treatment seems effective in preventing nocturnal erections after penile surgery.