Science Alert: Children with specific bladder care needs
November 21, 2017
Urinary tract anomalies are sometimes seen in children, and many of them require active treatment to achieve continence. Vesicoureteral reflux and/or a neurogenic bladder secondary to meningomyelocele (e.g. spina bifida) are two examples that require swift action.
Catheterization is sometimes a suitable solution and new research has studied the need for local anesthetic associated with catheterization. A meta-analysis combined many study results and concluded that the effect of local anesthetic was limited.
Sometimes, catheterization is not possible through the urethra and a continent catheterizable channel is surgically created. Different procedures (e.g. Mitrofanoff) can be used and two new studies look into the complications associated with this kind of surgery. Both studies conclude that surgical procedures should only be used in children who cannot perform urethral catheterization, because surgical revisions and long-term complications are common.
Another, maybe more far-fetched, solution to these children's problems is the use of stem cell therapy. A new review summarizes the available evidence for stem cell therapy and show that the use of bone marrow stem cells has potential in bladder tissue regeneration.
Topics: Science Alert, Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), Neurogenic bladder, Catheter-associated UTI (CAUTI)
Science Alert: Bowel problems – don’t forget to ask
November 14, 2017
At the International Continence Society (ICS) meeting in Florence in 2017, there was a round table session dedicated to anal (or fecal) incontinence.
Right from the start in the opening statement, it was established that breaking the silence surrounding fecal incontinence is the most important first step. This is also the main conclusion of a recently published review, which covers clinical management of fecal incontinence from the gynecologist’s perspective: Medical professionals should always ask the patient about anal and fecal incontinence.
Topics: Science Alert, Bowel management
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a heavy burden on the healthcare system today. UTIs are also one of the most common complications among people living with a neurogenic bladder, causing significant complications and health hazards. New clinical research investigates the clinical problem and demonstrates that UTIs are still among the leading causes of death in people with a neurogenic bladder.
On average, people with a neurogenic bladder experience 2 UTI events every year, requiring repeated antibiotic treatments. Frequent use of antibiotics is one of the main contributors to the high prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria today, and as a result, UTIs are getting more expensive and more difficult to treat. As a consequence, there is a major focus in clinical research on the search for non-antibiotic prophylactic treatment for UTIs.
Topics: Science Alert, Urinary Tract Infection (UTI), Neurogenic bladder, Catheter-associated UTI (CAUTI)
