Stony Brook urologists deploy catheter-free bladder monitoring system

THE BLUEPRINT:

• Stony Brook performs first East Coast use of Glean Urodynamics.

• Wireless, catheter-free system monitors bladder in real time.

• Technology is designed to improve patient comfort and diagnostic precision.

• Trial results published in “Journal of Endourology.”

There’s a new way to monitor bladder function in real time for patients, with no catheter required. This approach was recently used at the Women’s Pelvic Health and Continence Center at Stony Brook University Hospital. There, Dr. Jason Kim and Dr. Steven Weissbart performed one of the first procedures of its kind in the nation, and the first on the East Coast.

The diagnostic technology is through Glean Urodynamics procedures, using the ambulatory urodynamic system of California-based Bright Uro, a medical device company. The company aims to transform care for lower urinary tract dysfunction, fostering diagnostic accuracy, safety and overall comfort.

“We are proud to be at the forefront of urologic innovation,” Kim said in a news release about the technology. “This new technology marks a major step forward in patient-centered care by providing a more physiologic, less invasive approach to urodynamic testing. This will improve both the quality of the data we gather and the patient experience overall.”

Kim served as the national principal investigator for the FDA-approved trial of the Glean system. The results of the trial were recently published in the “Journal of Endourology.”

The approach is designed to help evaluate the bladder function of an estimated 17 million people in the nation who experience daily bladder control problems, according to Stony Brook University Hospital.

The system uses a sensor that is deployed in the bladder, allowing for the ambulatory monitoring of bladder pressure, according to the “Journal of Endourology” report. This technology is useful for people with lower urinary tract dysfunction, and whose symptoms may not always show up during standard office tests. The system is wireless, catheter-free, and designed to safely monitor bladder activity without requiring patients to stay in a clinical setting.

Records show that Stony Brook University Hospital was the second site in the nation to implement the technology, and the first on the East Coast.