Men ending up in hospital with painful erections have hit a record with some men permanently damaging their organs.
Being able ‘to go for ages’ is something plenty of men will try to lie and boast about, but in reality, if they are ‘standing up’ for hours, it’s not exactly a good sign for their health.
And it’s been reported that in the UK, up to March, 2025, there were 518 cases of painful erections. In total, a whopping 410 of these are said to have been emergency admissions for priapism while the rest had long-term troubles and were in for pre-planned or non-emergency treatment, according to The Sun.
What is priapism?
A very rare side effect of Viagra, priapism often affects people with sickle cell disease.
Essentially, it’s a long-lasting painful erection that can last for more than four hours and if it’s not treated quickly, it can cause permanent damage to the male organ.
It happens when blood stays in the organ and can’t drain, often happening without any kind of intimate arousal or stimulation.
With symptoms of pain, it’s said priapism most commonly affects adults between 20 and 50 years old.
As well as sickle cell disease, the NHS lists other causes as:
• Blood-thinning medicines such as warfarin
• Some antidepressants
• Use of drugs like cannabis and cocaine
• Some medicines for high blood pressure
• Other blood disorders such as thalassaemia and leukaemia
• Some treatments for erectile dysfunction
Priapism can have some rough consequences if untreated and that includes both erectile dysfunction and scarring of the tissues inside the organ.
What you can do yourself to reduce a painful erection
In order to try and reduce a painful erection at home, the NHS recommends a number of steps.
You can simply try and go for a wee, have a warm bath or shower, drink a load of water, go for a gentle walk, try out a few exercises like squats or running on the spot and take painkillers like paracetamol if needed.
But it’s recommended not to do any of the following:
• Apply ice packs or cold water as it can make things worse
• Have sex or masturbate as it won’t make the erection go away
• Drink alcohol
• Smoke
When to go to hospital for a painful, long-lasting erection
You should be calling medical emergency (driven by someone else or via an ambulance) if your erection is lasting more than three to four hours, or if you have sickle cell disease and a painful erection lasting over an hour.
At hospital, different treatments can be administered to reduce the erection.
A needle may be used to drain blood from the penis – don’t start crossing your legs over that too much, the area gets numbed under local anaesthetic. Tablets may be given or injections may also be administered directly into the penis.
And there is also potential for a surgery to drain the blood through a tiny cut – again, that’s done while the person is asleep under general anaesthetic.