News: Risks associated with urinary catheters go beyond CAUTIs, study finds

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) are a well-known risk associated with urinary catheters, but a new study in the Journal of the American Association (JAMA) found that the devices can cause many more issues than previously assumed. UTIs, in fact, are five times less common than other non-infectious problems caused by indwelling urinary catheters, HealthLeaders Media reported.

The researchers conducted in-depth interviews and chart reviews from 2,076 patients and found that more than half of catheterized hospital patients experienced a complication of some kind.

The complications varied in severity and type both while the catheter was still in place and after it had been removed, HealthLeaders Media reported. Some of the specific findings included:

• More than half suffered pain and discomfort
• One in four patients reported bladder spasms or a sense of urgency about urinating
• 10% said the catheter led to blood in their urine
• Nearly 40% of patients interviewed while the catheter was still in place said it restricted their daily activities
• About 20% who had their catheters removed said they experienced urine leakage, or difficulty starting or stopping urination

“Our findings underscore the importance of avoiding an indwelling urinary catheter unless it is absolutely necessary, and removing it as soon as possible,” says the study’s lead author Sanjay Saint, MD, MPH, chief of medicine at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, George Dock professor of internal medicine at the University of Michigan, and director of the U-M/VA Patient Safety Enhancement Program.

Editor’s note: To read HealthLeaders Media’s coverage of this story, click here. To read the study in JAMA, click here. To read about the cost of CAUTIs for hospitals, click here. To learn about documentation concerns related to the cause and effect relationship between catheters and infections, click here.