• Frank [he/him, he/him]
    ·
    11 months ago

    Erections are caused by your body relaxing some muscles to allow bloow to flow in to the penis, so afaik a lot of conditions that can cause paralysis can result in erection. It's one of the reasons you check for an erection if someone is unconscious and you suspect they got hit in the head - If they're unconscious and they have an erection the chance of a spinal cord injury is very high.

    • President_Obama [they/them]
      ·
      11 months ago

      Yup, always jerk em off a little. That way, when the EMTs arrive, you can tell them you "did the penis check" and they'll be overjoyed you spared them the trouble.

      • Frank [he/him, he/him]
        ·
        11 months ago

        I know it's kind of weird but it really is an important diagnostic tool for rapidly assessing a potential spinal injury. Importantly, it's something you can observe even if the victim is unconscious and unable to report numbness or inability to move.