Take the Quiz - Australia - Erectile Dysfunction

Instructions

Each question has five possible responses. Circle the number that best describes your own situation. Select only one answer for each question.

Over the last six months:

1. How do you rate your confidence that you could keep an erection?

2. When you had erections with sexual stimulation, how often were your erections hard enough for penetration (entering your partner)?

Almost never or never

A few times (much less than half the time)

Sometimes (about half the time)

Most times (more than half the time)

Almost always or always

3. During sex, how often were you able to maintain your erection after you had penetrated (entered) your partner?

Almost never or never

A few times (much less than half the time)

Sometimes (about half the time)

Most times (more than half the time)

Almost always or always

4. During sex, how difficult was it to maintain your erection to completion of intercourse?

Extremely difficult

Very difficult

Difficult

Slightly difficult

Not difficult

5. When you attempted sex, how often was it satisfactory for you?

Almost never or never

A few times (much less than half the time)

Sometimes (about half the time)

Most times (more than half the time)

Almost always or always

Score:

Information for clinicians

Add together the numbers corresponding to the answers for all the questions. If the patient’s score is 21 or less, erectile dysfunction (ED) should be addressed. The SHIM score measures the severity of the patient’s ED in the following manner:
22 – 25: No significant erectile dysfunction
17 – 21: Mild erectile dysfunction
12 – 16: Mild-to-moderate erectile dysfunction
8 – 11: Moderate erectile dysfunction

The purpose of SHIM

Accurate ED diagnosis is crucial as there are many well-established and effective treatments and ED is often indicative of other diseases
The SHIM questionnaire (also known as IIEF-5) is an abridged and slightly modified five-item version of the 15-item International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF), designed for easy use by clinicians to diagnose the presence & severity of ED in clinical settings
This diagnostic tool may reduce the number of incorrectly diagnosed or underdiagnosed cases
It is intended to complement the physical examination and patient history as a means of detecting ED

Sources

Rosen RC, Cappelleri JC, Smith MD, Lipsky J, Peña BM
Development of an abridged, 5-item version of the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) as a diagnostic tool for erectile dysfunction
Int J Impot Res (1999); 11; 319 – 326