Factors maintaining the intraurethral pressure in women.

To determine the components of the intraurethral pressure at rest, five continent women were studied with simultaneous urethrocystometry, including urethral pressure profile measurements, before, during and after curarization, as well as after clamping of the arterial blood supply to the urethra. The results showed that the striated muscle component in the urethra and pelvic floor is responsible for one-third of the total intraurethral pressure. Another one-third is exerted by the urethral vascular bed. The remaining one-third is most probably attributable to the smooth musculature and connective tissues in the urethra and the periurethral tissues.