Integrating the advances in the diagnosis and treatment of male potency disturbance.

A program of screening and diagnostic assessment is outlined for making decisions about the disposition of patients with potency disturbances. Initial screening of the psychological status and nocturnal penile tumescence provides a basis for deciding the need for full scale sleep studies, medical diagnostic studies, intensive psychological and psychiatric evaluation and so forth. By basing decisions on the use of expensive diagnostic procedures upon reliable but cost-efficient assessment devices we believe that the patient's time and resources will be conserved without sacrificing good medical practice. Indeed, a "decision tree" method of evaluation and diagnosis probably will result in less inappropriate usage of psychological intervention and medical-surgical intervention among individuals complaining of an erectile dysfunction.