| Painful priapism in men who took one of these drugs immediately before priapism started | Only a doctor's examination |
Recreational drugs (such as amphetamines and cocaine) | | Occasionally drug screening |
Other drugs (such as anticoagulants, certain antidepressants, antihypertensive drugs, psychostimulants, antipsychotic drugs, corticosteroids, or lithium) | Painful priapism in boys or men being treated for a disorder | Only a doctor's examination |
| In boys or young men, often of African or Mediterranean descent | Blood tests to check for abnormal hemoglobin (hemoglobin electrophoresis) |
| In men over 50 who have worsening symptoms indicating that the opening from the bladder into the urethra (bladder outlet) is blocked (such as a weak urine stream, difficulty starting urination, and dribbling at the end of urination) Sometimes blood in the urine | |
| Weakness or numbness in the legs | |
| Mildly painful and slightly rigid priapism In men who have had a recent injury to the penis or groin area | Duplex ultrasonography of the penis (ultrasonography that measures blood flow and shows structure of the blood vessels through which the blood is flowing) Angiography (x-rays of blood vessels) |