Abstract
We propose an optical method for uroflowmetry, exploiting the laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) technique onto an intermediate tubing apparatus having an elastic wall that can sensitively respond to flow-induced shedding vortices. Based on the method, we devised and fabricated an elastic-walled U-shaped tubing apparatus (EWUSTA), using the three-dimensional printing technique. We utilized the spatiotemporal contrast scheme for the LSCI as a fast and reliable computational algorithm. We investigated three different materials of flex-vinyl, ninja-flex, and natural rubber latex for the elastic wall of the EWUSTA in steady flow conditions, and verified that their optimal operational ranges could extend up to 7, 15, and 25 ml/s, respectively. We characterized the natural-rubber-latex-based EWUSTA in dynamic flow conditions in comparison with a commercial reservoir-weight-transducer-based gravimetric flowmeter, and verified its feasibility. We stress that the proposed method can offer precise and accurate information on flow dynamics. In addition, we found that the upper limit of the optimal operational range of the proposed apparatus had strong correlation with the tensile strength of the elastic-wall material. We reckon that the proposed and demonstrated method has great potential not only for uroflowmetry but also for other flow-related medical and industrial applications.
Highlights
Storage and emptying of the urinary bladder is one of the most important basic physiologies of the human body
We empirically figured out that when we reduced the angle between the inlet water flow direction and the elastic wall, thereby leading to the V-shaped tubing apparatus or further to the I-shaped tubing apparatus, the sensitivity of the laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) measurement was considerably reduced in comparison with the case with the U-shaped tubing apparatus
We first carried out spatiotemporal LSCI with the 3-D printed elastic-walled U-shaped tubing apparatus (EWUSTA) in steady flow conditions, investigating the three materials specified in Table 1 for the elastic flow-induced-vibration wall (EFIVW)
Summary
Storage and emptying of the urinary bladder is one of the most important basic physiologies of the human body. Uroflowmetry is a noninvasive, fast, and inexpensive procedure, capable of providing useful information on the bladder voiding pattern, during which a patient is only able to empty his or her bladder either in standing or sitting posture. Due to such a simple procedure, it is performed for most patients, who visit the urological clinic for lower urinary tract dysfunctions as the first-line test.[4] To date, various types of uroflowmeters have been developed for uroflowmetry: the most common types of them are based on a weight
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