Grant: Collaborative Health Research Projects

At least 10% of the Canadian population (>3.5 million Canadians) will develop a kidney stone*in their life, resulting in significant patient morbidity and burden on the healthcare system. This*problem is further deteriorated as ~50% of the patients will have a repeat episode within 5*years. Most patients are treated by placing a ureteral stent, a thin hollow plastic tube, in the*ureter (the duct that bridges the kidney to the bladder) to ensure proper urine drainage past*the stone that may be blocking it. Ureteral stents are also used in cancer patients to maintain*urine flow through the ureter that may be compressed by growing tumor. The stent itself,*however, often causes an obstruction in the urine flow, by limiting the ureters wave-like*motion to push urine down to the bladder and/or by building up crystals on the stent. In such*case, the kidney swells, a condition known as hydronephrosis, which results in kidney injury*and eventual failure if left untreated. This research will develop a novel smart ureteral stent*that will continuously track renal pressure while it is indwelling, uniquely allowing for early*detection of increased pressure before damaging hydronephrosis develops. This will enable*non-invasive, quantitative, and cost-effective tracking that is currently not available via any*existing diagnostic route. The stents will be developed to function as radiofrequency*antennas, with embedded micro pressure sensors and microelectronic chips to wirelessly*sense and transmit renal pressure. The device will be prototyped using microsystems*technology available at UBC. This novel stent technology will allow kidney stone patients to*check the status using a portable monitor at home, giving an alarm for the need of further*diagnosis and necessary treatment by urologists. The research results are anticipated to*promote different types of stents and other implants to acquire perceptual features for a wide*range of medical applications beyond the urologic area.