Differential diagnosis of impotence in diabetics: The v...

Differential diagnosis of impotence in diabetics: The validity of sexual symptomatology

Differential diagnosis of impotence in diabetics: The validity of sexual symptomatology
October 2005
Dr. Gene G. Abel, Judith V. Becker Jerry Cunningham-Rathner, Mary Mittelman, Marshall Primack
Wiley InterScience

Keywords
diabetic impotence • sexual symptoms • diagnosing impotence • NPT


Abstract
Sixty diabetic males complaining of impotence were administered a structured interview and completed nocturnal penile tumescence (NPT) monitoring to categorize their impotence as either organic, psychogenic, or undetermined. A summary score of seven sexual symptoms was found to be effective in differentiating organic from psychogenic impotence. By relying upon these seven sexual symptoms as a screening test, 38% of male impotent diabetics can be spared the expense of NFT monitoring, since the outcome of such monitoring can be predicted from the summary score of these seven symptoms. The correlation between the seven sexual symptoms and the subjects' NPT monitoring results was 0.78, accounting for 61% of the variance. Therefore the seven sexual symptoms can be useful in predicting NPT monitoring results before the monitoring is completed. The sensitivity, specificity, and efficiency of the seven sexual symptoms is discussed, as well as the cost efficiency of utilizing this screening device.

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