Dfree ultrasonic sensor in supporting quality of life and patient satisfaction with bladder dysfunction

Bladder dysfunction is physically and mentally stressful. Long-term catheterization is indicated as conservative therapy for chronic urinary retention as well as urinary incontinence; although an indwelling, transurethral catheter still represents a risk factor for ascending urinary tract infection and urosepsis. The primary outcome of this study was the impact of the DFree ultrasonic sensor on the subjectively perceived quality of life and satisfaction of patients. The secondary outcomes evaluated were usefulness, ease of use (user-friendliness), quality of care, and self-reported degree of autonomy. In this pilot study, 18 urological patients with various kind of bladder dysfunction were treated with an ultrasonic sensor for at least 12 h a day over a 3-month period. Assessment was conducted using the Kings Health Questionnaire (KHQ) and the German version of the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire (ZUF-8) (quantitative data) and guided interviews (qualitative data). Eighteen participants were included in this study. Participants highly appreciated the ideas and concepts of the device. A change in KHQ after treatment could not be statistically confirmed; however, the average value in ZUF-8 showed satisfaction with Dfree. However, no significant improvement was observed in the quantitative data. During the interviews at the end of the testing phase, the participants provided positive feedback with specific suggestions to improve device usability. The application was described as helpful and easy to use. Data triangulation illustrates that an improvement in technical implementation could increase device usefulness. This would imply higher patient satisfaction when using the device for bladder dysfunction.