Urology

More than Half of Patients With Urethral Catheters Have Complications

More than half of patients with indwelling urethral catheters experience noninfectious complications, according to new findings.

This conclusion emerged from a study of 2076 patients at 4 US hospitals from August 26, 2015, to August 18, 2017. Of these patients, 1653 (79.6%) received short-term catheters for surgical procedures.

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Patients were assessed at baseline, 14 days, and 30 days after catheter insertion and asked about any infectious or noninfectious complications they experienced with catheter use and how catheterization affected their daily and social lives.

Ultimately, 1184 (57.0%) of 2076 patients reported at least 1 complication associated with their catheter.

In this cohort, reported complications included:

  • Infectious complications: 219 (10.5%) of 2076 patients
  • Noninfectious complications: 1150 (55.4%) of 2076 patients
    • Pain or discomfort
    • Hematuria
    • Sense of urinary urgency

Infectious complications occurred more frequently in women (92 [15.5%] of 594 women vs 127 [8.6%] of 1482 men), whereas noninfectious complications were more common in men (869 [58.6%] of 1482 men vs 281 [47.3%] of 594 women).

A total of 49 (39.5%) and 54 (43.9%) of 124 patients who had catheters still in place reported experiencing restrictions in daily activities or social activities, respectively. In addition, 99 (4.9%) of 2034 patients reported sexual problems after catheter removal.

“Noninfectious complications of urethral catheters affect a substantial number of patients, underscoring the importance of avoiding urethral catheterization whenever possible,” the researchers wrote.

“Given the high incidence of these patient-reported complications, urethral catheter–associated noninfectious complications should be a focus of surveillance and prevention efforts,” they concluded.

—Christina Vogt

Reference:

Saint S, Trautner BW, Fowler KE, et al. A multicenter study of patient-reported infectious and noninfectious complications associated with indwelling urethral catheters [Published online July 2, 2018]. JAMA Intern Med. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2018.2417