Regenerative urinary bladder augmentation using small intestinal submucosa: urodynamic and histopathologic assessment in long-term canine bladder augmentations.
PURPOSE: To evaluate small intestinal submucosa (SIS) as a possible bladder augmentation material. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Nineteen male dogs underwent 35 to 45% partial cystectomy with immediate augmentation with SIS grafts. All dogs were evaluated pre- and postoperatively with blood chemistries, urine cultures, intravenous urograms, cystograms and cystometrograms. Postoperatively (1 to 15 months), bladders were examined with routine histology and image analysis. RESULTS: All dogs survived their intended survival period without morbidity. All results were normal. Histologically, all 3 layers (mucosa, smooth muscle, serosa) of the normal bladder showed evidence of regeneration. CONCLUSIONS: Small intestinal submucosa acts as a scaffold for bladder augmentation through regeneration and could be a potential option for bladder reconstruction.