A Polypyrrole-based Strain Sensor Dedicated to Measure Bladder Volume in Patients with Urinary Dysfunction

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Biomedical Engineering
• Polymer Science

Background:

• Urinary bladder dysfunction requires accurate urine volume monitoring.
• Existing methods for urine volume measurement can be invasive or lack precision.
• Development of novel, non-invasive sensing technologies is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a new technique for measuring urine volume using an electronically conducting polymer.
• To evaluate the performance of a polypyrrole-coated elastic fabric as a strain sensor for bladder volume monitoring.
• To assess the feasibility of using this sensor for passive interrogation in biomedical applications.

Main Methods:

• Chemically depositing polypyrrole onto a highly elastic fabric.
• Configuring the fabric around a phantom bladder to measure changes in electrical resistance upon stretching.
• Conducting dynamic mechanical testing to analyze the sensor's strain response and fabrication influences.
• Investigating the linear relationship between resistance and strain within a specific range (20%-40%).

Main Results:

• The polypyrrole-coated fabric exhibited a reproducible change in electrical resistance when stretched.
• A linear resistance response to stretching was observed for strain variations between 20% and 40%.
• The sensor's resistance change was found to be influenced by the chemical fabrication conditions.

Conclusions:

• The developed polypyrrole-on-fabric sensor demonstrates a feasible approach for measuring urine volume in patients with bladder dysfunction.
• The sensor's ability to provide a reproducible and linear strain response supports its potential for passive interrogation in biomedical sensing.
• Further research into optimizing fabrication conditions could enhance the sensor's performance for clinical applications.