The objectives of this proposal are to: (1) recruit subjects with lower urinary tract disorders (LUTDs) to validate the new patient-reported outcome (PRO) tools currently being developed by NIDDK LURN Research Network, and (2) use innovative technologies to extensively phenotype a targeted population to expand our understanding of the pathophysiology of LUTD. We have assembled a multidisciplinary team of investigators with recognized expertise in male and female LUTDs, urologic phenotyping research, bioinformatics, wireless technologies, functional MRI, and structural neuroimaging.
In Aim 1, we proposed a systematic, data-driven, targeted approach to recruit subjects with LUTDs to validate the new LURN PRO instruments.
In Aim 2, we will enroll subjects with overactive bladder (OAB), systematically collect their phenotype, symptom data and biospecimens using existing bioinformatics pipeline and wireless technologies at Washington University, and prospectively follow them up for 12 months to identify predictors of OAB progression or regression.
In Aim 3, we will use innovative neuroimaging techniques to phenotype OAB patients with and without incontinence.
The objectives of this proposal are to: (1) recruit subjects with lower urinary tract disorders (LUTDs) to validate the new patient-reported outcome (PRO) tools currently being developed by NIDDK LURN Research Network, and (2) use innovative technologies to extensively phenotype a targeted population to expand our understanding of the pathophysiology of overactive bladder (OAB).