Indwelling Urethral Catheter Blockages
Posted , 3 users are following.
hi - i have an indwelling urethral cath for about 2 years.
generally i've had no probs. however within the the past 5 months i've had a several blockages usually occurring 2 to 4 weeks after a change.
i've tried the "cranberry & drink plenty of water" but without effect.
i wear a leg bag that is changed every week but i notice it becomes semi-opaque towards the end of that time - sort of slightly whittish in colour - is that normal?
a guy on the web, an ex builder & suffering from chronic blockages uses sterile pipe cleaners to solve the problem.
the latter seems rather extreme so can anyone advise further on the issue of cath blockages?
cheers
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1 like, 2 replies
jimjames lander
Posted
I'll repeat my response from your earlier thread in case you missed it. It therefore references both of your threads.
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Hi Lander,
A couple of thoughts.
First, I'm surprised you would be prescribed an indwelling catheter for this long with only an "implied diagnosis" and "without tests". It is important to find out the exact cause of your acute retention and then consider all the appropriate treatment options. Depending on your diagnosis, options might include medication, exercises, a non-invasive in-office procedure, surgery, catherization, or a combination of things. I am guessing you have not seen a specialist (urologist) or tests would have been done and you would have a more accurate diagnosis. So really the first thing to do would be to seek out a specialist.
If it turns out that the specialist still recommends catherization, you might discuss with them self-catherization as opposed to an indwelling catheter. I was diagnosed over two years ago with a flaccid bladder and at the time was retaining 1.5 liters of urine in my bladder. In the beginning I was self-catherizing six times a day, and over time less. That's because my bladder started to regain some of its lost elasticity with the self catherization process. It's called bladder rehabilitation.
Once learned, self catherization is a quick and painless procedure that gives you the same benefits of the indwelling catheter without having to wear one 24/7. It also allows you to use your bladder muscles as best you can to help with the bladder rehabilitation process.
But again, first I would seek out a urologist, get a proper diagnosis, and consider all your options.
Jiim
lander jimjames
Posted
i paid to see a urologist the day after i was discharged from hospital having been admitted for 2 weeks due to acute retention.
the urologist was so negative about everything that i disposed of his services - he had booked a hospital (non private) urodynamics test but cancelled it as i was no longer under his care.
i attended my gp for blood & urine tests but nothing else was suggested other than a turp.
the issue relating to the turp is in a previous thread.
i'm interested to know with regard to your SC & flaccid bladder if you have any sensation of a full bladder or do you just SC regularly without any feeling of "the the need to go"?
also do you have any independant flow & what is the prognosis regarding your badder?
presently if my IDC was removed i would have no flow due to the BPH.
i'm booked to see a urologist in 3 weeks but the thought of SC scares the hell out of me.
cheers
jimjames lander
Posted
Some of this may be redundant to my response in your other thread but here goes.
Prior to intermittent self catherization (ISC) I was retaining over a liter of urine after forceful urination using the Crede Method. So at that point I had very little bladder sensation until the bladder was probably holding 1.5 liters.
I began ISC on a six time a day schedule to keep my post volume residual (PVR) below 400 ml, which is the usual magic number. They tell you to try and naturally void before each ISC. In the beginning I wasn't able to most of the time, but after a few months I was able to naturally void say 50 per cent of the time. After the natural void I would then perform ISC.(
Fast forward to today where my ISC schedule is sometimes as little as once or twice a day, and sometimes I don't even need it. Yesterday, for example, I naturally voided all day (no ISC) and this morning had zero PVR as measured by the ISC.
The point is that ISC can potentially rehabilitate your bladder. My rehabilitated bladder now is able to empty either completely or at least under the 400cc theshold most of the time. Prior to self catherization, it would have been zero per cent of the time.
I'm not quite sure how this would translate into your case since you've been on an indwelling catheter so long. On one hand your bladder has gotten quite a rest, but on the other you haven't needed to use your detrusor muscles to urinate, so they may have weakened.
Unless you are going for surgery, I don't see what you have to lose by trying ISC for six months or so. You'll have the freedom of not having to wear a catheter 24/7 and potentially you will start seeing results like I did.
You say, "the thought of SC scares the hell out of me". The way you feel is the way most people feel and that is one reason why most people don't go that route. The other of course is that most doctor's are programmed to either treat you medically or with surgery.
All I can say is this. I doubt if you are any more anxious than I was when I started. I am not exagerating when I say that I almost passed out the first time the nurse showed me how to do it. It wasn't from the pain, but I think mostly from the mental trauma.
After that, I had a rough month or two, primarily because I was using the wrong catheter and that I developed a UTI that the doctor didn't treat properly.
Three months later I found another urologist who treated the uti agressively, and at the same time I started using a more gentle catheter. Again, I'm not exagerating when I say that when I do ISC now it's about as traumatic as brushing my teeth, and actually takes less time!
You may be one of the lucky ones that has an easy go from the start, or you may be like me and have a rough couple of months initially, or you may fall somewhere inbetween. But once your body adapts to the catheter (I"m told the average is 2-5 weeks) you will wonder what the big deal was all about. In fact, it's possible your body won't have to adapt at all since you've already been wearing an indwelling catheter.
Looking back, I can say it was 100% worth the initial discomfort, because it has given me an option for life to be able to quickly and completely empty my bladder, whenever I want, without medications or surgery.
Jim