For any of the options below, call our comprehensive Pelvic Health Center to speak with our Pelvic Health Navigator at (402) 717-7358. Our dedicated team will help navigate your patient through the entire process.
Adjustable Continence Therapy
Make accidental urine leakage a thing of the past with Adjustable Continence Therapy.
What can patients expect?
The innovative outpatient procedure takes approximately 30 minutes; no overnight stay is required:
- Silicon balloons are placed on either side of the bladder neck to provide support to the bladder by restricting the flow of urine through two valves.
- Balloons are connected to a titanium filling port.
- During adjustment visits, the implanted balloons are tailored to each person's individual needs.
- Small needle is inserted through the skin into the port to add or remove fluids.
- Optimal results are generally achieved in 3- 4 adjustment visits.
- Device does not need to be manipulated by the patient at any time.
Robot Assisted Radical Prostatectomy
Robot Assisted Radical Prostatectomy (RARP) is a minimally invasive procedure for removal of the prostate due to cancer. It is the most common surgical treatment for this condition.
What can patients expect?
Recovery tends to involve one night in the hospital and placement of a foley catheter for 7-14 days. Patients are advised to avoid heavy lifting for 3-6 weeks following surgery.
Many patients also wonder about recovery of urinary and sexual function following prostate surgery. A number of different options are available, depending on which structures have been impacted by the enlarged prostate. You can speak with your surgeon, and they may also recommend a referral to physical therapy services in order to maximize your potential for a good surgical outcome.
Kidney Stone Treatment and Prevention
Many people who have had kidney stones, tend to continue making them. There are a number of options to help people avoid making new kidney stones. This process starts with a chemical analysis of the stone to determine what it is made of. An increase in fluid intake sufficient to generate 2 liters of urine a day is typically recommended. Further evaluation into stone prevention requires a 24 hour urine collection done at home and mailed to a special laboratory for analysis. Our providers analyze and interpret the 24 hour urine chemistry, and create a customized kidney stone prevention plan for the patient. Such a plan usually involves a dietary modification and sometimes medication. If the treatment plan is followed consistently, kidney stone production is typically reduced by over 90%.
3D Ultrasound Printing
CHI Health is one of the first institutions in the country creating 3D ultrasound prints for prospective parents. With the three-dimensional print, the new parents can feel the contours of the baby's face and get an understanding of what their baby looks like – whose nose he or she has, for example.
Having access to a 3D print of an ultrasound is more than a parent-pleasing use of technology. CHI Health researchers are studying how it can raise oxytocin levels and increase attachment to the baby for new parents. While potentially beneficial for all new parents, specific reasons 3D prints can be provided include:
- Parents who are visually impaired and would otherwise be unable to view a regular ultrasound print.
- Mothers who are smoking while pregnant (11-15% of pregnant women) to help increase the likelihood of smoking cessation.
- Parents of babies who have a cleft lip, to improve familiarity and bonding even before their baby is born.
- Parents experiencing anxiety or depression or other psychological issues.
- Fathers to enhance paternal attachment before their baby is born.
Overall, the technology holds potential to enhance the prenatal and postnatal experience for all parents and families by providing this unique piece of the puzzle of their future newborn.
CHI Health researchers are continuing to study whether using this technology can reduce smoking by pregnant women and decrease prenatal ER visits, for example, and whether its ability to enhance the bonding experience could potentially make 3D prints a new standard of care.