2. Penile Injection
โข Penile injections, or Intracavernosal Injections (ICI), is a treatment for erectile dysfunction that
involves injecting a small amount of medication into the erectile tube in the penis
โข Common ICI medications include: Trimix, Bimix, Prostaglandin
โข After the injection, an erection is created within 5-10 minutes, and ideally lasts for 30-60
minutes
โข This treatment does not rely on nerve function, so it is effective even if your nerves are
damaged from prostate cancer treatment
โข Requires teaching by our sexual health clinicians
3. How It Works?
โข The medication injected works by stimulating penile blood flow and relaxing the penile
muscle, resulting in an erection.
โข The effect is localized to the penis, so it will not cause effects on the rest of your body
4. How To Perform An Injection
โข Ensure that you have all of your supplies before you begin:
โข Injection medication (stored in fridge)
โข Needles
โข Alcohol swabs
โข Sharps disposal container
โข Injection information package including dosing chart
โข Sudafed pills in case of prolonged erection
โข *Note using a flat surface such as night table or bathroom counter may be helpful.
5. How To Perform An Injection
โข Break the process into 3 steps:
1. Prepare the medication
2. Prepare your penis to receive the injection
3. Deliver the injection.
6. Priapism
โข Priapism is an erection that lasts too long
โข There is a small risk of having priapism for 4 hours or more after penile injection therapy
โข Priapism may result in damage to the penile muscle through lack of oxygen.
โข To prevent priapism:
โข Do not take more medication than the dose prescribed
โข Do not combine with any other erectile dysfunction medication (ie. PDE5-i's such as Viagra,
Cialis or Levitraj
โข You can inject up to 3x a week, but no more than once in 24 hours
7. Priapism
โข If you develop Priapism:
โข After 1 hour โ attempt climax, gentle physical activity, cold shower
โข After 2 hours- take 4 (30mg) tabs of Sudafed
โข After 3 hours- proceed to local emergency department
โข An erection lasting 4. hours is a medical emergency, and may result in penile muscle damage
and future risk of erectile dysfunction
