Care of Indwelling Catheters

There are several reasons why a patient may need an indwelling catheter. An indwelling catheter is a tubing that runs from the bladder, through the urethra and drains urine into a bag. Indwelling catheters require particular care to make sure they function properly and do not become infected. There are tips and information regarding your catheter that will make sure you are giving proper care to it.

General Care

• If you cannot urinate normally, your doctor may prescribe an indwelling catheter. This can be a result of several different medical problems, such as an enlarged prostate after surgery or other medical conditions. An indwelling catheter can be a short-term situation, or the catheter may be kept in long term.

  Steps to making sure your catheter is cared for properly are to first record the amount of urine in the bag each time you empty it. This gives your doctor a record of how much you are urinating during the day and night. Always check the tubing to make sure that the tubing is in good condition--that it does not have any kinks or holes. The bag should always be kept below bladder level so that it can drain without getting backed up as well as to help prevent infections. This is true for any position you are in: sitting, standing, lying or walking. Once the urine leaves the bladder, it has the potential of becoming infected by developing back flow. The bag should also not be irritating to the skin or area where it is attached--such as the leg. Check for redness, raw areas on the skin, cracks or drainage.

Infection Prevention

• One of the most common problems with indwelling catheters is the ability for them to get infected. Proper care to make sure that bacteria does not get into the urethra or where the catheter meets the skin is very important. Without proper cleaning and sanitizing, germs can travel into the body by way of the catheter tubing.

  Clean all around the area where the catheter enters into the body. You should also clean the top of the catheter, several inches of the tubing outside the entrance into the body. To clean, use an antibacterial soap or a particular solution your health care provider may have recommended. Watch for signs of irritation that could result in infection of the skin. Notify your physician if you notice any urine leaking around the catheter, or if the catheter accidentally gets pulled out.

Considerations

• If your catheter does not seem to be working correctly, you need to notify your doctor. If you develop these symptoms, let your doctor know immediately: fever, uncontrollable chills, sweats, lower abdominal pain, back pain, pain around your urethra, and cloudy and bad-smelling urine. These are signs of complications and should be taken seriously.

  Catheters also have the potential to damage the urethra due to excessive tugging on the tubing or the bag. Extreme precaution needs to be made to make sure that the tubing is not pulled on. If there is tugging, you may see blood in the urine in the bag. If the blood clears up quickly, more than likely there wasn't severe damage and should just be watched closely. However, if there is excessive bleeding or it does not clear up, you should see your doctor immediately.