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Posted: Monday, 01 October 2007 9:08AM
New Procedure Could Improve Bladders in Spinal Cord Patients
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by KYW's Lynne Adkins
Urologists at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital are studying a procedure that could improve the bladder control of adults with spinal cord injuries.
People with spinal cord injuries often have malfunctioning bladders.
Assistant professor of urology Dr. Patrick Shenot says this procedure would give the patient some help from a bladder grown from their own cells.
"The process works by obtaining a small piece of tissue from the patient's native bladder. It's sent to a lab and, over a two-month period of time, the tissue is grown on a device called a scaffolding, and then it's reimplanted over the patient's native bladder, effectively enlarging it."
He says if successful, this could improve the quality of life by improving incontinence and reducing the chance of kidney damage and other complications.
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