Changes in the biaxial viscoelastic response of the urinary bladder following spinal cord injury.

In order to gain a deeper understanding of bladder function, it is necessary to study the time-dependent response of the bladder wall. The present study evaluated and compared the viscoelastic behaviors of normal and spinal cord injured (SCI) rat bladder wall tissue using an established rat model and planar biaxial stress relaxation tests. Bladders from normal and spinalized (3 weeks) rats were subjected to biaxial stress (either 25 or 100 kPa in each loading direction) rapidly (in 50 ms) and subsequently allowed to relax at the constant stretch levels in modified Kreb's solution (in the absence of calcium; with no smooth muscle tone) for 10,000 s.

Intravesical capsaicin for the treatment of interstitial cystitis: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVES: To study the safety and efficacy of intravesically administered capsaicin, a C-fiber afferent neurotoxin, in patients with interstitial cystitis (IC). METHODS: A pilot study of intravesical capsaicin therapy was performed on 5 female patients diagnosed with IC using NIDDK criteria. Patients were evaluated with cystoscopy and CMG on initial presentation.