Heparin inhibition of increased bacterial adherence following overdistension, ischemia and partial outlet obstruction of the rabbit urinary bladder.

While it is well established clinically that urinary tract infection in the presence of outflow obstruction may be associated with difficulty in eradicating bacteria, it is not clear whether this is secondary to the presence of residual urine volume or other local effects of the obstruction such as attenuation of the intrinsic antibacterial defense mechanisms of the mucosal surface. Experiments in our laboratory and others over the past several years have demonstrated that the primary antibacterial defense mechanism of the bladder is the antiadherence effect of the bladder surface mucin layer. Additional studies have shown that heparin can duplicate this antiadherence activity of bladder mucin. The present report demonstrates that one hour of overdistension or ischemia and one week of partial outlet obstruction cause a functional defect in the intrinsic antiadherence effect of the bladder mucosa as evidenced by increased bacterial adherence. This defect can be reversed by heparin exposure prior to bacterial challenge. These results indicate that partial outlet obstruction and its potential sequelae such as overdistension and, particularly, mucosal ischemia, have dramatic adverse effects on the intrinsic antiadherence defense mechanism of the bladder. These effects can be reversed by intravesical exposure to an exogenous anionic polyelectrolyte (heparin).