Wireless micromanometer system for chronic bladder pressure monitoring

Abstract

This paper describes a wireless system to monitor urinary bladder pressure comprising an implantable device with an external receiver and wireless battery charger. The device is intended to be implanted within the bladder wall, sealed behind the urothelial lining. This location is protected from the urine stream, thus avoiding mineral encrustation and stone formation, and is suitable to measure intravesical pressure in chronic applications. The implant is dimensionally designed to gain access to the bladder using conventional urological tools, e.g. a cystoscope. The active circuit implant features a custom application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), rechargeable battery and wireless telemetry. Inductive charging, novel power management schemes and innovative packaging allow this device to be inserted through the urethra, implanted within the bladder wall, and operate for a lifetime of up to 10 years.