Application of Bio-impedance Analysis on Urology

• Main Authors: Vincent F. S. Tsai, 蔡芳生
• Other Authors: Fu-Shan Jaw
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2011
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/90771972356235572520

博士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 醫學工程學研究所 === 100 === As urologists, we encountered clinical problems which were biomedical engineering related. This dissertation introduced three clinical problems to be solved and tried to find out the biomedical engineering solutions for those problems. They are home-use sperm counting, safe electrosurgery for human penis and a monitoring system for transurethral resection of prostate (TURP) operation. Male infertility is a progressive problem with the industrialization and influences nearly half of those infertile couples. It is necessary to frequently monitor sperm quality of a male, who intends to achieve conception or is in his treatment for infertility. A basic characteristic for human semen--- electrical impedance spectrum was depicted by both analytical and experimental methods. Based on the electrical impedance of sperm, a home-use microfluidic sperm counting device was developed, which can provide information of sperm motility and concentration. Although electrosurgery for urology has been used since the 19th century, the basic electrical characteristics of penis are still not well documented. The resistivity, current density and electrical field strength of penile tissues were derived by series and parallel models, and electrical-current division analysis. Additionally, the safety for penile electrosurgery according to the electrical characteristics of penis was discussed in detail. Benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) is a common disease among elder males. TURP is considered the golden standard for treating BPH. Estimation of the resected urethral diameter and estimation of blood loss are the two common problems occurring in TURP and complicate the operation. Utilizing impedance measurement of fluid in glass cylinders, the simulated diameter of urethra can be estimated well. By measuring the change in impedance of a closed/irrigating system, the simulated blood leakage can be quantified. An in vivo TURP monitoring system would be developed based on the results of this experiment. With these three examples of applications of biomedical engineering on urological problems, it is concluded that the combination of biomedical engineering and other clinical sciences is worthy for further study and promising for innovative research and development.