RADIOTELEMETRIC MANOMETRY OF THE URINARY- BLADDER

The standard procedure for manometric investigation of bladder functio n involves the use of a urethral catheter. The presence of this foreig n body causes irritations, however, with a resultant increase in ureth ral resistance. This perturbs the micturation process, but it can be a voided by a new telemetric method of intravesical pressure measurement s. A very small pressure gauge and radio emitter are introduced into t he bladder, and the values measured are transmitted to an external rec eiver. Thus, for the first time, is possible to perform physiological studies of bladder function that do not require catheterization or spe cial positioning of the patient and are well tolerated. Some examples are described, which show that this method allows repeated catheter-fr ee investigations over longer periods of time and accurate evaluation of the effects of pharmacological products on bladder function.