Nocturnal Penile Tumescence and Rigidity Testing in Bicycling Patrol Officers

Details

• Personal Author:
  Breitenstein, Michael J. ; Clark JC ; Lowe, Brian D. ; Schrader, Steven M. ; Turner TW
• Description:
  A health assessment study was conducted in response to complaints of groin numbness in a bicycling police unit. Seventeen male cyclists were compared with 5 nonbiking men. The cyclists rode an average of 5.4 hours per day, and 91% indicated they experienced groin numbness on occasion. Each man wore the RigiScan Plus Rigidity Assessment System for one normal sleep session. Pressure measurements were also taken between the cyclist and the bicycle saddle. The percentage of sleep sessions that recorded an erectile event was significantly lower in the cyclists than it was in noncyclists (cyclists 27.1%; noncyclists 42.8%; P =.008). This duration percentage is negatively correlated with average hours a day that cyclists rode their bikes (r = -.41; P =.05), the number of days a week they rode (r = -.55; P =.009), and the average pressure exerted on the nose of the bike saddle (r = -.39; P =.08). The other measures of erectile quality (tumescence activity units [TAUs] and rigidity activity units [RAUs] of both the base and tip of the penis) were lower in the cyclists, but did not reach statistical significance. The number of hours cyclists rode during the day of RigiScan Plus assessment was negatively correlated with penis tip RAU (r = -.41; P =.04), and tip TAU (r = -.45; P =.04). These data suggest that prolonged bicycle riding may have negative effects on nocturnal erectile function and indicate a need for innovative bicycle saddle designs. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Law Enforcement Occupational Health Safety Urogenital Diseases Urogenital System Workplace
• Keywords:
  Author Keywords: Bicycle Saddle Bicycles Impotence Occupational-health Occupational-safety-programs Police-officers Reproductive-hazards Reproductive-system-disorders Sexual Dysfunction Worker-health Workers Workplace-monitoring

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• ISSN:
  0196-3635
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DART - Division of Applied Research and Technology
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  23
• Issue:
  6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20022915
• Citation:
  J Androl 2002 Nov-Dec; 23(6):927-934
• Contact Point Address:
  Steven M. Schrader, PhD, Chief, Reproductive Health Assessment Section, NIOSH C-23, 4676 Columbia Parkway, Cincinnati, OH 45226
• Email:
  sms4@cdc.gov
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2003
• NORA Priority Area:
  Disease and Injury: Fertility and Pregnancy Abnormalities
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Andrology
• End Date:
  20060930
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:e42bd805d1f1e201b6f3ca2ae30b2be4f78a27c285951c85bb299b5f3fbda7325381e4ea17a3ea59c1885384fe158db366428dd4bf6b827f0a4ee624bf2f5ebc
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/199529/cdc_199529_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 235.50 KB ]