Near‐Infrared Spectroscopy for Noninvasive Bladder Evaluation: Systematic Review and Future Directions

Near‐infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is an optical method that can be utilized to measure changes in oxygenation and hemodynamics in human tissues. Numerous studies have been published on NIRS, but many of them are not aimed at urological rehabilitation applications, especially bladder monitoring (BM). A systematic literature review (SLR) was prepared for this research using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses (PRISMA) methodology. Excluded papers were more than 5 years old, duplicated, or unrelated to urological rehabilitation applications. Among all the research, over 1800 studies referred to other bladder conditions such as cancer applications. Of the remaining papers, only 16 studies were focused on NIRS BM. Of them, 25.00% refer to wearable devices, 31.25% to noninvasive optical techniques, and 43.75% to advanced diagnostic tools. Of the seven advanced diagnostic tools articles, five combined NIRS with other methods like uroflowmetry, and two focused on NIRS alone. Despite some limitations, several studies emphasize the importance of NIRS and the potential of its related technologies in the monitoring and management of bladder dysfunctions, offering noninvasive and patient‐friendly solutions. Consequently, clinical trial studies to establish the effectiveness and reliability of NIRS in various patient populations are warranted to enhance the clinical utility and patient outcomes of NIRS‐based BM systems.