Intelligent Ureteral Stent System for Prevention of Renal Damage

至少有10%的加拿大人口(350万加拿大人)会在一生中患上肾结石**，导致严重的病人发病率和医疗保健系统的负担。这个**问题进一步恶化，因为约50%的患者将在5**年内再次发作。大多数患者的治疗方法是在输尿管(连接肾脏和膀胱的管道)内放置输尿管支架(一种细小的中空塑料管)，以确保尿液适当地排出可能阻塞输尿管的结石。输尿管支架也用于癌症患者，以维持尿流通过输尿管，而输尿管可能被不断生长的肿瘤压缩。然而，支架本身通常通过限制输尿管波状运动将尿液推入膀胱和/或通过在支架上形成晶体而导致尿流受阻。在这种情况下，肾脏会肿胀，这种情况被称为肾积水，如果不治疗，会导致肾脏损伤**并最终衰竭。这项研究将开发一种新型的智能输尿管支架**，它将在留置期间持续跟踪肾压，独特地允许在损害肾积水发生之前及早**检测压力升高。这将实现目前通过任何**现有诊断路径无法获得的**非侵入性、定量和经济高效的跟踪。支架将被开发成具有射频**天线的功能，嵌入微型压力传感器和微电子芯片，以无线**感知和传输肾脏压力。该设备将使用UBC提供的MicroSystems**技术进行原型制作。这项新的支架技术将允许肾结石患者在家中使用便携式监视器检查病情，为需要进一步诊断和必要治疗的泌尿科医生发出警报。预计研究结果将**促进不同类型的支架和其他植入物获得感知特征，用于**泌尿外科领域以外的广泛医疗应用。

At least 10% of the Canadian population (>3.5 million Canadians) will develop a kidney stone**in their life, resulting in significant patient morbidity and burden on the healthcare system. This**problem is further deteriorated as ~50% of the patients will have a repeat episode within 5**years. Most patients are treated by placing a ureteral stent, a thin hollow plastic tube, in the**ureter (the duct that bridges the kidney to the bladder) to ensure proper urine drainage past**the stone that may be blocking it. Ureteral stents are also used in cancer patients to maintain**urine flow through the ureter that may be compressed by growing tumor. The stent itself,**however, often causes an obstruction in the urine flow, by limiting the ureters wave-like**motion to push urine down to the bladder and/or by building up crystals on the stent. In such**case, the kidney swells, a condition known as hydronephrosis, which results in kidney injury**and eventual failure if left untreated. This research will develop a novel smart ureteral stent**that will continuously track renal pressure while it is indwelling, uniquely allowing for early**detection of increased pressure before damaging hydronephrosis develops. This will enable**non-invasive, quantitative, and cost-effective tracking that is currently not available via any**existing diagnostic route. The stents will be developed to function as radiofrequency**antennas, with embedded micro pressure sensors and microelectronic chips to wirelessly**sense and transmit renal pressure. The device will be prototyped using microsystems**technology available at UBC. This novel stent technology will allow kidney stone patients to**check the status using a portable monitor at home, giving an alarm for the need of further**diagnosis and necessary treatment by urologists. The research results are anticipated to**promote different types of stents and other implants to acquire perceptual features for a wide**range of medical applications beyond the urologic area.