The use of PotenTest in the multidisciplinary evaluation of impotence: is it a reliable measure? Jefferson Sexual Function Center.

This study compares the findings of multidisciplinary evaluation to the three-night use of the PotenTest, a standardized stamp test for the evaluation of nocturnal penile tumescence, in 174 patients. An organic etiology was diagnosed in 54% of those evaluated. The PotenTest proved accurate as a screening device for organic disease. Among the 48 patients who did not break any of the stamps over the three nights, 40 were found to have an organic basis for their erectile failure, for a predictive value of 83%. Among the 68 patients who broke all of the stamps, 45 were found to have a psychogenic basis for their erectile failure, for a 66% predictive value. When one or two of the stamps were broken over the three nights, the predictive values as to the etiology of the erectile failure were considerably diminished and of no diagnostic value. Results for only one night of usage revealed that of the 73 patients who did not break the stamps, 56 (77%) were found to have an organic etiology. Of the 101 patients who broke the stamps on the first night, 63 (62%) were found to have a psychogenic etiology.