Biomechanical analysis of the pelvic floor and pessary devices using colpodynamic imaging and finite element modeling

Pelvic floor disorders, such as pelvic organ prolapse (POP), negatively affects millions of women each year. POP is the descent of the vagina resulting in symptoms of vaginal bulging, pelvic pressure or heaviness, pain, and incontinence. A nonsurgical
option for POP symptom relief is the use of pessaries, removable vaginal prosthetics; however, current pessary designs can be cumbersome resulting in ineffective use. Recently, COSM Medical has developed GynethoticsTM, which uses a predictive model to identify an optimal patient-specific pessary design. This model is informed by demographic data, anatomic measurements, and colpodynamic imaging (CDI) data, which combines 3D ultrasound with biomechanical analysis of the pelvic floor. The goal of this project is to analyze the detailed CDI data collected by COSM Medical to better understand the female pelvic floor biomechanics. This analysis combined with computational modelling of current pessary designs will result in improved pessary design and use.

Faculty Supervisor:

Stewart McLachlin

Student:

Partner:

Cosm Medical

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Manufacturing

University:

University of Waterloo

Program: