UCL Poster Competition 2004/2005 Gallery

Modelling Posterior Urethral Valves: Fetal Detrusor Physiology Following Short-Term Bladder Outflow Obstruction

By Dr Marie-Klaire Farrugia
Institute of Child Health_

Posterior Urethral Valves are the commonest cause of fetal bladder obstruction. 70% of these children progress to end-stage renal failure by their teen-age years, despite postnatal surgery. We have created a model of the obstructed fetal bladder in order to study detrusor structure, compliance and contractility, with a view to finding the right time-frame for antenatal intervention.