URETHRAL CALIBRATION IN POSTMENOPAUSAL WO MEN EXAMINED FOR BLADDER AND SPHINCTER DISORDERS

In order to appreciate the consequences of aging on the urethra, two p rospective studies assessed its caliber in postmenopausal women. The p opulation included aged women who came to consultation for disorders o f the bladder and sphinecters. The clinical checkup, assessing the pat ient's age, morphology, time elapsed since menopause, local consequenc es of hormonal deficiency and urinary functional signs, was completed by an urodynamic examination. In the first study (76 patients), the ur ethra was calibrated using two Peters dilating bougies ranging from Ch arriere 10 to Charriere 26. In the second study (50 patients), measure ments were made with OTIS-type ball dilators ranging from Charriere 9 to Charriere 30. This exploration was made in 126 patients. Urethral c aliber was greater than or equal to Charriere 24 in 78 % of patients. Only 2.3 % of women had urethral ''stenosis'' with a Charriere score u nder 18. Contrary to what we were expecting, the urethral caliber does not seem to decrease with age. This unexpected statement and the diff iculties of statistical analysis we have encountered lead us to comple ment our study.