EN 
DE Safe Bladder Catheter Care
Blocked catheters
CaDo Medical Solutions
Why does an indwelling catheter become blocked?
If the catheter is left in place for a long time, incrustations can form in the bladder catheter, caused by salts and chemical processes of certain types of bacteria that are found in the so-called "biofilm" of the catheter tube. The likelihood of bacteria occurring increases with the length of time the catheter is in place.
Statistically, one in three patients with permanent catheterization will experience a blockage within a year.
CaDo Medical Solutions
Catheter blockages affect us all
A catheter blockage causes urine to back up in the bladder. This is extremely painful for the affected patients. If treatment is delayed, this can lead to complications: the urine of patients who are permanently diverted is always contaminated with bacteria. If there is back up, this can lead to blood poisoning and/or acute kidney failure.
Currently, patients can try to free the blocked catheter by flushing it and/or changing the blocked catheter.
Catheters must be changed under medical supervision. In such cases, the patient is usually transported to a doctor's office or hospital outpatient department.
Blocked catheters represent an ever-present danger for patients and limit their quality of life. The patient transport and treatment in outpatient clinics lead to a burden on the healthcare system that could be avoided in the future.
CaDo Medical Solutions
Treatment of blocked catheters
One Catheter blockage is an acute urological emergencywhich must be treated immediately to avoid complications such as pain and fever leading to blood poisoning and acute kidney failure.
If the appropriate material is available, you can try flushing the catheter with sterile saline solution. There are products on the market with a suitable cone for connecting to the catheter and a bellows for injecting the solution. The use of a bladder syringe, however, should be reserved for specialist personnel.
If flushing is not possible, the catheter must be changed immediately. It should be noted that abdominal wall catheters in Germany may only be changed by a doctor or under medical supervision. In this case, immediate transport to a doctor's office or emergency room is required.
In the future, the Cado system will be available to you for reliable catheter cleaning.
How can I prevent this?
Drink enough
An essential factor in preventing incrustations is a adequate dilution of urine through fluid intake, e.g. drinking. In practice, the urine should appear as light and transparent as possible.
Good hygiene
For catheters in the natural urethra, the external part to be cleaned daily with soap and waterIn the case of abdominal wall catheters, the puncture site should be kept clean and the dressing, which is recommended at the beginning, should be replaced regularly (at least every 2-3 days).
Generally, closed drainage systems are recommended, whereby the urine bag should be equipped with a drip chamber with a flap valve and positioned below the bladder level. Patients with attached leg bag systems should be avoided in a horizontal position.
Regular external bladder irrigation should only be used in exceptional cases, as it is more likely to promote infections and is usually unable to remove incrustations. However, it can be useful, especially in bedridden patients, to weekly flushing to remove sediment from the bladderHowever, flushing does not provide reliable protection against catheter blockages.
The repeatedly described acidification of urine by taking L-methionine has also not really proven effective in practice for patients who frequently suffer from catheter blockages.
