HISTORY OF DEVELOPMENT OF INSTRUMENTS TO MANAGE URETHRAL STRICTURES

Abstract

The history of the urethral stricture is a fascinating story spanning over three thousand years. It shows the continuous human struggle to overcome the problem of stricture urethra. It not only highlights the progress of medicine and application of modern technology but also its failure to offer a relative cure of this disease. The earliest recorded attempts to treat urethral stricture dates back to the sixth century B.C., when metal and wood dilators were described in the Ayurved (Schmidt et al 1980). The procedure was little changed over the next 2,400 years. Dilatation was done with stalks of plants, feathers, papyrus rolls in Egypt, catheters of copper and bronze in Pompei, metal dilators and “explorers” of the Arabian surgeons. Candles, silk tissues leading finally to plastic catheters were used to dilate strictures in  Algerian town called Bujiyah. This town was famous for its honey and beewax in the mediaeval times. The French named their dilators “bougies” and were followed by others. Americans refer to urethral dilators as “sounds” from the metal instrument used to detect bladder calculi by clicking against them before the days of x-rays. Today the words “bougie and sound” are interchangeable.