Dynamic Urethral Constriction Device for Urinary Incontinence
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Solution Overview
Problem
Urinary incontinence results from malfunctioning bladder, sphincter muscles, prostate gland, and urethra, leading to urine leakage due to anatomical or physiological weaknesses, often exacerbated by aging, obesity, or disease, causing emotional and social issues.
Innovation Solution
A surgically implanted device that applies a constrictive force to the urethra, creating a 'non-patent state' to obstruct urine flow, which reconfigures to allow normal urination when internal pressure increases, and returns to obstruct when pressure decreases, preventing leakage without causing trauma.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a device is implanted to obstruct urine flow through the urethra, then urinary incontinence is prevented, but the urethra may be damaged or traumatized
Solution Approach 1:
The device utilizes changes in internal system pressure to dynamically alter the state of the urethra between patent and non-patent. During normal conditions, the device maintains the urethra in a non-patent state to prevent leakage. When internal pressure increases during micturition, the urethra transitions to a patent state to allow flow. This pressure-dependent parameter change enables reliable prevention of incontinence while avoiding constant constriction that would cause trauma.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is designed to be dynamic rather than static, automatically adapting its constriction force based on internal system pressure. The urethra transitions between constricted and patent states in response to pressure changes, allowing the device to maintain obstruction during normal conditions while permitting flow during micturition without causing permanent damage.
2Reliability
If the device maintains constant obstruction of the urethra, then urine leakage is prevented, but normal urination function is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The device responds to changes in internal system pressure by automatically adjusting the degree of urethral obstruction. During normal conditions with lower pressure, the urethra remains constricted to prevent leakage. When internal pressure increases during micturition, the device allows the urethra to open, enabling normal urination function without requiring manual intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The device is self-regulating and automatically adapts to the physiological needs of the patient. It uses the body's own pressure changes to determine when obstruction is needed and when normal flow should be permitted, eliminating the need for external control mechanisms while maintaining both incontinence prevention and normal urination function.
3Reliability
If the device applies strong constrictive force to the urethra, then the non-patent state is achieved, but the internal system pressure required to overcome the obstruction increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device applies constrictive force that is dynamically adjusted based on internal system pressure. During normal conditions, the device maintains sufficient obstruction to achieve the non-patent state. When internal pressure increases during micturition, the constrictive force is automatically reduced or overcome, allowing the urethra to open and permit urine flow without requiring excessively high pressure.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Effectively manages urinary incontinence by reliably preventing urine leakage during normal conditions while allowing urination when necessary, without causing permanent harm to the urethra, thus addressing the emotional and social impacts of the condition.
Implementation Method 1
The obstruction can be induced by the application of a constrictive force, a restrictive impediment or sufficient external pressure or force, on or around the urethra so as to collapse and sufficiently close the urethra
Implementation Method 2
A normal systemic function proceeds with the bladder muscles and the abdominal muscles contracting and the bladder sphincter muscle relaxing. This normal systemic function creates an internal system pressure that is sufficiently high enough to overcome the 'urethra non-patent state' induced by the device
Implementation Method 3
As soon as the internal system pressure of urine in the bladder and flowing along the urinary tract falls below the threshold of the 'urethra patent state,' the device begins to overcome the internal system pressure caused by the urine flow and naturally and inherently returns back to its 'urethra non-patent state'
Data Source
AI summary
A device for treating urinary incontinence. The device comprising a body having a passage, for accommodating a urethra of a patient, extending from an inlet to an outlet of the device. The passage being configured so as to normally induce a flow obstruction in the urethra, following surgical implantation of the device. The flow obstruction, induced by the device, being sufficiently pliable and deformable so that once an internal system pressure within the urethra becomes sufficiently great, the internal system pressure overcomes the flow obstruction, induced by the device, and creates a flow passage through the device.