Patients visiting urology outpatient department who were advised uroflowmetry during their evaluation underwent simultaneous recording of conventional (Laborie UrocapTM) and mobile-based app uroflowmetry (MenHealth®). Conventional uroflowmeter was filled with 100 mL water, set to zero and patients were asked to micturate directly in the container while trying to hit the water puddle to generate sound. Reports were generated for the same micturition by both methods. Data were compared in terms of peak flow, average flow, and voided volume. Female patients were excluded from the study.
Initial few cases showed incomplete and highly variable results. Background noise elimination resulted in accurate measurements. 65 male patients were included. Median age was 47.2 years. On conventional uroflowmetry, the median Qmax, Qavg, Voided volume and voiding time were 11.4 mL/sec, 7.3 mL/sec, 255 mL and 54.6 seconds respectively. Similar parameters on mobile app were 11.9 mL/sec, 7.8 mL/sec, 288 mL and 51 seconds respectively. Good correlation was found for all four parameters in terms of Qmax (r= .85, p=.000), Qavg (r= .86, p=.000), voided volume (r= .92, p= .000), and voiding time (r= .95, p=.000).
Mobile app-based uroflowmetry demonstrated comparable findings to conventional uroflowmetry. Quiet surrounding environment was needed to exclude background noise and perform the test with good accuracy. Mobile apps are easy to use and further validation is needed in various settings for future use.
