Alternatives to indwelling urinary catheters help patients avoid infections and urethral trauma

Avoiding the pointless use of indwelling catheters and promptly eradicating catheters which can be now not wanted are the primary steps in stopping catheter-associated urinary tract infections in acute care hospitals, in response to new suggestions developed by 5 medical societies and printed at the moment within the journal An infection Management & Hospital Epidemiology.

“Urinary catheters could be related to infection and in addition with non-infectious harms like trauma and obstruction,” stated Payal Patel, M.D., an infectious illness doctor at Intermountain Well being and lead creator of “Methods to Stop Catheter-Related Urinary Tract Infections in Acute Care Hospitals: 2022 Replace.”

“Prevention of an infection associated to make use of of typical indwelling urinary catheters is multidisciplinary. Many members of the well being care staff, together with medical doctors and nurses, have a job,” continued Dr. Patel.

Urinary tract infections are one of the frequent well being care-associated infections, and as much as three-quarters of urinary tract infections are attributable to an indwelling urinary catheter. Catheter-related infections have been related to larger hospital mortality and elevated size of keep at a price of almost $2,000 per hospitalized affected person.

The up to date suggestions embody a mannequin, “Disrupting the Lifecycle of the Urinary Catheter,” which identifies alternate options to indwelling catheters, exhibits the best way to observe steerage for safely inserting and sustaining catheters, and prompts well being care personnel to provoke well timed removing. Non-catheter methods embody immediate toileting, urinals, bedside commodes, incontinence clothes, and/or using non-indwelling catheter methods reminiscent of intermittent straight catheterization or exterior urinary catheters.

Since length of catheterization is crucial danger issue for growing an infection, the authors suggest not less than day by day overview of continued catheterization, which might embody automated reminders of the presence of a catheter or overview throughout rounds of all sufferers with urinary catheters.

Different important practices embody making certain provides are available for non-catheter and catheter administration of sufferers’ urinary points, and making certain when catheters are used, they’re positioned to beds and wheelchairs in ways in which keep away from kinking of tubing, which will increase the danger of an infection. Educating well being care professionals about urine tradition stewardship whereas offering indications for urine cultures is one other new important observe.

The doc updates “Methods to Stop Catheter-Related Urinary Tract Infections in Acute Care Hospitals,” printed in 2014.

The urinary catheter paper is the ultimate installment within the newest Compendium replace, which started with publication of methods to stop ventilator and non-ventilator related pneumonia in Could of 2022.