Researchers at Duke University in Durham N.C., have created a prototypical urinary catheter that can get rid of nearly 90 percent of the biofilm that builds up on catheter walls, according to a Science Codex report.
Biofilm is a structure of bacterial colonies that can play host to pathogens, posing a risk of infection for catheterized patients. The researchers developed a catheter with an inflation channel that runs parallel to the main urinary tract. When the channel is inflated with air or liquid, a barrier that sits in between the channel and the urinary tract gets pushed into the urinary tract, dislodging collections of biofilm. The biofilm is then flushed from the catheter with the regular urinary flow.
Historically, efforts to eliminate biofilm have focused on antimicrobial properties, but researchers fear such a solution could lead to antimicrobial-resistant superbugs, according to the report.
"There are more than 30 million [catheters] used every year," said Vrad Levering, a PhD student in biomedical engineering at Duke, in the report. "And for a technology that has changed very little in 50 years, the problem is kind of atrocious. We hope we have found a solution."
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