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AUR

Posted , 10 users are following.

stephen54687
stephen54687

Acute Urinary Retention, have you suffered it?

Unfortunately it happened to me, for the first time, earlier this month, just as I was at the hospital waiting for my Urolift. I was sent home with a catheter and am awaiting a TWOC (trial without catheter)

If you have suffered AUR I would be interested to know what happened when the catheter was removed. In particular, how long did you have the catheter following AUR and could you pee okay when it was taken out? I have read that having a catheter may cause some incontinence after its removal, did you suffer from this, if so, how severe was it and how long did it last?

Personally I cannot understand why one needs to have a catheter in place for two weeks, I feel it is too long and that the longer it is is place the more complications it can cause. 

I am hoping that this episode of AUR is a one off and I can go ahead with the Urolift.

Thanks, in advance, for any insight.

Best wishes,

Steve.

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  • bb26995
    bb26995 stephen54687

    Posted

    Stephen, and to others who read this thread;

    One of the possible complications after the Urolift Procedure is to need a catheter.

    http://www.drtimnathan-urology.com.au/urolift-procedure

    Not common, but it has happened to me.

    The procedure was done last week. I had a catheter in over the weekend as a precaution (since I had been in retention before the procedure with a catheter).

    I had a flow test / TWOC yesterday and did not do well. I was sent home without a catheter for 2 hours (and then return to the clinic). At home while I was able to get some urine through (including after the stress of driving myself back to the clinic), I was not close to emptying the bladder.

    Options from the nurse;

    1. She said it's possible the bladder isn't working properly due to the catheter/stress of the operation. Another flow test/TWOC will be done next week. .
    2. There is another blockage. This possibility would be examined in a future cystoscopy and could be addressed in a future Urolift operation.

    I'll keep you posted. BB

    • bb26995
      bb26995

      Posted

      To anyone who reads this thread, I have some close to final thoughts.

      After another flow test / TWOC and cystoscopy, I still have a catheter, but a nurse had me now use it without a urine bag.

      The idea is to train my bladder to work properly again.

      It's less painful than doing a self catheter (which I could not do) so, this is another way to hopefully get a similar result; allow the bladder to shrink in size, work the bladder muscles and improve the mind bladder connection.

      • Finally, I don't think there is nearly enough discussion on the web about the details of urinary retention.

      • While many men (as I did) try to bear the problems of BPH on their own, their bladders are stretching with negative consequences and possibly not being able to urinate means a catheter at least short term and all that involves.

      • My future procedures will probably be discussed in another thread about Urolift complications / limitations.

        My current doctor, during the exam was uncertain about what to do; (a full TURP? But he said the urethra was open but then said my prostate was long and not completely clear?).

      • I’m seeing another urologist on Monday for a second opinion, and to discuss if he can do some scans to better find out what is going on.

        (Again, I'll look at posting about that in another thread).

      Best wishes to you all. BB

    • bb26995
      bb26995

      Posted

      PS. Being new to this (starting only last August) I'm still learning a lot more about my condition.

      I have now seen 5 urologists about my situation & surgery options.

      A. Due to a CT scan for kidney stones, I've found out I have a diverticulum or pouch in my bladder wall.

      This is another possible result of acute urinary retention (in my case I had 1.1 liters of urine taken out of me in the ER in August).

      B. Exactly a month ago I learned to use intermittent catheters on my 3rd try. While I'm getting better at CIC, it started out with bleeding. Even now with a soft coude (curved tip) catheter I can have bleeding at least once a day.

      Sometimes there is no blood while doing a self cath, still I have some pain almost every time.

      C. 4 of the urologists I've seen recommend the bipolar TURP. The 5th urologist who is the furthest away (a 1 hour drive) recommends a bipolar TURP or the greenlight laser to do the same thing as a TURP.

      They all believe that the blockage in the bladder neck of my urethra channel needs to be opened up to give the best chance for my damaged bladder to work without a catheter.

      D. Without a cath my voiding is 25 to 50 ml. With a cath I get about 300 ml.

      Again, best wishes if anyone reads this. BB

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