Un nouveau dispositif pour la mesure in vivo des pressions intravaginales

Abstract

We describe a new device for the simultaneous measure of pressures at eight points inside vagina at rest and during the usual stress tests done in examination of prolapses. This new instrument provides in vivo measurements, in particular in patients suffering from a prolapse. A high-density polyethylene cylinder is fitted with eight miniaturised strain gauges connected to a measuring system that is used for calibration, real-time display and data recording in a standardised format. Its rigid attachment to the examination table enables it to adapt to the anatomy of each patient and overcomes the bias of being held in hand. A metrological study provides exact calibration and precise technical characters of this measuring instrument after we specially designed for this purpose a new physical phantom of the pelvic cavity. Preliminary in vivo measurements made on healthy women completed this study: they showed the method's feasibility and the very good tolerance of the instrumentation. This study will be now extended to larger groups of patients to establish a possible link between the recorded pressures and the clinical data.