Urinary Catheter

What is a catheter and what is it used for?

A urinary catheter is a thin, flexible, rubber or plastic tube. It drains urine (pee) from your urinary bladder when you can’t pee on your own. They come in different sizes and shapes, so anyone can use them.

What are the parts of a urinary catheter?

The parts of a urinary catheter may include:

• Insertion tip. This is the narrow end of a catheter that usually enters your urethra to reach your bladder. The tip may be softer and straight or slightly more rigid with a small curve (coudé tip). A curved tip helps move through blockages or narrow areas in your urethra.
• Drainage holes. These are tiny holes in the tube near the insertion tip that make it easier to drain your pee.
• Tubing. The tubing may be a basic, hollow tube, or it may have two or three separate pathways (channels). The largest channel allows pee to drain from your bladder. Healthcare providers use the others as access pathways to your bladder.
• Balloon. A balloon attaches to the insertion tip. Once the insertion tip reaches your bladder, a provider will use an access pathway in the tubing to inflate the balloon with sterile water. The full balloon holds the catheter in place in your bladder. Not every type of urinary catheter has a balloon.
• Drainage port. The drainage port is at the opposite end of the tube from the insertion tip. It connects to a urine bag.
• Urine bag. Pee flows out of your bladder, through the catheter and into a urine bag (collection bag or drainage bag) outside of your body.

What are the different types of catheters?

There are two main types of urinary catheters:

• Intermittent catheters
• Indwelling catheters

Intermittent catheters

An intermittent catheter is a basic, single-channel tube. You only use an intermittent catheter when you need to drain your bladder — usually several times a day. A healthcare provider inserts it into your bladder through your urethra. A provider may also teach you how to drain it yourself (self-catheterization). Once you drain your bladder, you remove the catheter.

Indwelling catheters

An indwelling catheter remains in your bladder for a longer period — you should change it every month. It collects pee in a collection bag, which you wear under your clothes.

The most common type of indwelling catheter is a Foley catheter. It enters your body through your urethra. It usually has two pathways — one to drain your pee, and the other to inflate a balloon in your bladder to hold it in place. Sometimes, Foley catheters have three pathways — providers use the third pathway if they need to flush your bladder out with sterile saline solution (continuous bladder irrigation) or deliver medication to your bladder.

A suprapubic catheter is another type of indwelling catheter. It accesses your bladder through a small cut (incision) in your belly. It isn’t as common as a Foley catheter.

What is a urinary catheter used for?

Healthcare providers regularly use urinary catheters to drain your bladder when you can’t pee on your own. Causes may include:

• Urinary retention
• Certain types of urological surgery
• Urinary incontinence
• Prostate enlargement (benign prostatic hyperplasia or BPH)
• Scarring
• Bladder stones
• Blood clots in your pee
• Spinal cord injury
• Medical conditions such as dementia or multiple sclerosis (MS)

Providers may also use a urinary catheter to:

• Drain your bladder during surgery
• Determine how much pee you’re making in a hospital setting
• Control bleeding that occurs during surgery or from an injury
• Deliver medicine directly to your bladder
  
  

What happens during urinary catheter placement?

Before catheter placement, a healthcare provider will clean your genital area with an antiseptic to help prevent infection. Then, they’ll apply a numbing gel or cream (such as lidocaine) and lubricant (lube) to reduce discomfort.

Once you’re numb, the provider will insert the catheter through your urethra. Once the catheter enters your bladder, pee will drain into the collection bag. They may secure the catheter in place with a balloon or remove the catheter once you finish peeing.

Before suprapubic catheter placement, a provider will take X-rays or an ultrasound to make sure it’s safe to place the catheter. Then, they’ll clean your belly with an antiseptic and apply a local anesthetic so you won’t feel much pain. Once you’re numb, they’ll make a small incision, place the catheter in your bladder and secure it in place.

Do you still have to pee with a catheter?

No, you won’t need to squeeze any muscles to make yourself pee if you have a urinary catheter in. Pee will flow automatically from your bladder, through the catheter and into your collection bag. You can’t control the force or speed like a typical urine stream.

How do I care for a urinary catheter?

Keep the area around your catheter clean. To prevent an infection, be sure to wash your hands with antibacterial soap and clean water before you touch your catheter or handle your collection bag.

Clean the catheter tubing at least twice a day with soapy water and a wet paper towel or washcloth. Gently pat the tubing dry with a clean towel.

How do I empty a collection bag?

If you have a collection bag, empty it every two to three hours. If you have a larger collection bag, empty it every eight hours.

To empty the bag:

• Wash your hands
• Remove the stopper or open the clamp that keeps your collection bag shut
• Empty the collection bag into a toilet
• Clean the drainage port with soap and water, and wipe away (down) from the drainage port to push germs away
• Pat the drainage port dry
• Replace the stopper or clamp
• Wash your hands again

A healthcare provider may give you a container to measure how much pee you remove from your collection bag. If you have this container, empty your collection bag into the container, record the amount and empty the container into a toilet.

How do I change a collection bag?

To change the collection bag:

• Wash your hands
• Empty the collection bag (if you have a measuring container, measure the amount of pee first)
• Use soap and water to clean the connection between your catheter and the collection bag, and wipe down to push germs away
• Pinch the catheter tubing with your fingers just above the connection
• Disconnect the bag from the catheter
• Connect the new bag and release the tube

A healthcare provider will give you specific directions if you need to use a collection bag for a long period. If you’re going to use a urinary catheter for longer than a week or if it starts to smell, wash the collection bag with soap and water. You can also rinse the bag with 1 ¼ cups of white vinegar in 2 quarts of water to deodorize the bag and prevent infection.

How long does a catheter usually stay in?

It depends on the type of catheter you’re using and why you need it. Sometimes, you only need to have a catheter in a few times a day, for a few minutes at a time, while you recover from a treatment or condition. But you may need to keep it in for hours, days or even months at a time. In some cases, you may need to use a catheter permanently. A healthcare provider will tell you what to expect.

If you need to use a catheter long-term, be sure to change it out at least every month to help prevent infection.

What are the potential benefits of a urinary catheter?

Urinary catheters allow you to drain your bladder. Not being able to drain your bladder may cause:

• Urinary tract infections (UTIs)
• Abdominal pain
• Bladder stones
• Bladder swelling
• Permanent bladder damage or kidney damage
• Leakages

What are the risks or complications of urinary catheters?

Possible urinary catheter risks or complications include:

• UTIs
• Bladder muscle spasms
• Leakages
• Bleeding
• Accidentally removing the catheter
• Twists or kinks in the tube that prevent drainage

How painful is getting a catheter?

Sometimes, inserting a urinary catheter can be uncomfortable or painful. But using a numbing gel can reduce pain.

What should I avoid while wearing a catheter?

If you have a urinary catheter, it’s a good idea to check with a provider before you:

• Use scented soaps, moisturizers or lotions, antiperspirants or perfumes in the area
• Take baths — it’s better to take a shower
• Swim
• Exercise
• Have sexual intercourse, including masturbation

Is there anything I can do to make urinary catheters easier on me?

You can help reduce discomfort or pain by:

• Coating a urethral catheter with lots of lube before you insert it to reduce friction
• Taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) as needed for pain (check with a healthcare provider before you start taking NSAIDs)
• Switching to another type of catheter size, material or brand
• Drinking lots of water
• Performing Kegel exercises to strengthen your pelvic floor muscles and relieve bladder spasms

When should I call my healthcare provider?

Contact a healthcare provider if you have any questions or problems with your urinary catheter.

Call a provider right away if:

• You have a fever
• You have cloudy urine
• Your pee smells strong or foul
• You’re leaking pee around your catheter
• You have pain in your abdomen, or you feel full
• You notice blood clots or blood in your pee (hematuria)
• Pee isn’t flowing into your collection bag
• Your catheter comes out

Can you feel yourself pee with a catheter?

You usually won’t feel like you need to pee with a catheter in place, and you won’t feel the pee draining into your urine bag.

Can you get erect with a catheter?

Yes, you can get an erection with a catheter. But it might be uncomfortable or painful.

What happens if you come while wearing a catheter?

It’s natural for people to have questions about their sexual activity if they have a urinary catheter in place. Talk to a provider before you engage in any sexual activity, including masturbation, to determine if it’s safe for you.

It’s possible to ejaculate (come or cum) if you have a penis and have a urinary catheter in. Semen won’t exit your penis through the catheter. The catheter enters your bladder from your urethra. Semen contains sperm from your testicles and fluids from your seminal vesicles and prostate gland, which empty into your urethra from your ejaculatory ducts. Upon ejaculation, your semen will leak out of your urethra around your catheter. This may be uncomfortable or painful.

It’s also possible to orgasm if you have a vulva and have a urinary catheter in. But there’s a risk of accidentally pulling your catheter out during sexual activity.