Abstract
Annually, there are many bladder cancer patients undergoing radical cystectomy (RC) with urinary diversion worldwide. Until 2019, intestinal cystoplasty is still the gold standard for bladder replacement, but this therapy is always associated with severe complications. An ideal bladder substitute without using intestinal tissue remains a challenge today. In this work, an artificial mechatronics bladder (AMB) as a brand new bladder replacement approach is developed. We studied the main physiological function characteristics of a natural urinary bladder from teaching books and relevant papers. According to these characteristics, we completed an overall design of AMB and made a prototype in lab. The prototype successfully realized the functions of a natural bladder in vitro. It can expand to store urine in real time when urine is flowing into it. It can send a urination alarm when it is fully filled and can void urine automatically after receiving remote control signals. According to relevant papers and our test experience, if the prototype could be smaller and lighter and manufactured with good biocompatibility materials such as PTFE, we think it is possible for AMB to be implanted in an animal's body, and we deduce AMB could realize the functions of a natural urinary bladder in vivo. After thorough validation from animal testing, we hope AMB can be a good clinical option for bladder removal patients in the future.
Highlights
Bladder cancer is the most common malignancy of the urinary tract [1]
“Is it possible that we are no longer confined to the bowel for bladder replacement [5]?” until 2019, intestinal cystoplasty remains the gold standard [5,6,7]
In the process of searching literature, we found Rohrmann et al [8] presented a spherical silicon rubber bladder (SRB) in 1996 which reports that the SRB can efficiently collect urine by creating a negative pressure and discharge urine by manually compressing the belly of the sheep
Summary
Over 7000 patients are estimated to undergo radical cystectomy (RC) with urinary diversion in the United States [2]. Patients have to face a multitude of complications [3] and live a suboptimal quality of life after RC, because this traumatic event is often associated with significant changes in body image, urinary and sexual functions, interpersonal relationships, and psychosocial stress outcomes [4]. “Is it possible that we are no longer confined to the bowel for bladder replacement [5]?” until 2019, intestinal cystoplasty remains the gold standard [5,6,7]. Bladder replacement or expansion without using intestinal tissue is still a challenge, despite progress in the manufacture of biomaterials and the development of cell therapy [6]
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