Urethral distension as a novel method to simulate sphincter insufficiency in the porcine animal model

Abstract

Abbreviations & AcronymsObjectives: To describe a novel animal model of intrinsic sphincter deficiency. Methods: The study was carried out on 10 female pigs. Injury to the urethral sphincter was induced by distension of the urethra. This was obtained by using the balloon of an 18-F Dufour catheter for 5 min followed by its retraction through the urethra without draining the balloon. The urethral pressure profile was evaluated before injury, immediately postinjury and at day 28 postinjury in the experimental group (n = 5), and on day 1 and day 28 in the control uninjured group (n = 5). The maximal urethral closure pressure, the functional urethral length and the area under curve of the urethral pressure profile were measured. Results: The mean maximal urethral closure pressure at the beginning of the experiment was 32 cmH2O, and the mean functional urethral length was 4.88 cm. The assessment at day 28 showed a reduction of the maximal urethral closure pressure (50% of the control, P > 0.05), the functional urethral length (52.5% of the control, P < 0.05) and the area under curve (52% of the control, P < 0.05) in injured pigs. Histologically, a fibrosis of the sphincter was detected without rupture of the muscle layer in all the samples. Conclusions: The proposed porcine model can be used to obtain intrinsic sphincter deficiency-like urodynamic findings without rupturing the sphincter. This methodology can be applied to investigate therapies for intrinsic sphincter deficiency.

Precise injection of human mesenchymal stromal cells in the urethral sphincter complex of Göttingen minipigs without unspecific bulking effects

“…Therefore, studies employing large animal models complementing the experiments performed with rodents are important to investigate the therapeutic potential of cells under anatomically more relevant conditions. Some animal studies employed dogs to generate incontinence and to inject cells, others established incontinence in pigs and investigated cellular regeneration in this model . Urinary leak point pressure or urethral pressure profiles can be determined in these large animal models using standard clinical instruments.…”

The Effect of Endoscopic Administration of Autologous Porcine Muscle-derived Cells Into the Urethral Sphincter

“…All animals underwent the same established anesthetic regime. 16 The animals were treated in compliance with national law and institutional regulations. All procedures were approved by the Local Ethics Animal Welfare Commission.…”

Optimum anesthesia for reliable urethral pressure profilometry in female dogs and goats

“…However, before application in clinical trials, the efficacy of cell injections and the procedure of injection itself must be tested on animals with anatomy of the lower urinary tract similar to humans. Few such experiments have been carried out in large animals, such as dogs and pigs . Both species have their shortcomings in this regard, which is why we used adult female goats for their size and anatomy of the urethra, which resembles the human urethra.…”

“…Few such experiments have been carried out in large animals, such as dogs and pigs. [3][4][5][6] Both species have their shortcomings in this regard, which is why we used adult female goats for their size and anatomy of the urethra, which resembles the human urethra. Goats have rarely been used for research on the lower urinary tract.…”

“…7 Studies that aim to evaluate intraurethral cell therapy efficacy in large animal models often use UPP to assess the functional effect. [3][4][5] This method is not clinically useful when evaluating the general population of women with stress urinary incontinence, as in most cases lack of urethral support is responsible for this condition. However, cell therapy aims to treat sphincteric deficiency, and UPP is a method of choice for the assessment of urethral sphincter function.…”