Background: Long-term indwelling catheters assist people who are unable to use another bladder management method. However, urine leakage is a common problem with an indwelling urinary catheter. This study aims to determine whether a modified catheterisation technique would reduce urine leakage incidence.
Methods: Participants were randomly divided into conventional or modified catheterisation groups. In the modified technique group, the volume of fluid that needed to be injected into the balloon to obtain a suitable catheter front-end curvature (120-145°) was measured before catheterisation. Baseline characteristics and first-time success rates and procedure durations were similar between groups.
Results: There were 30 patients in each group. Compared with conventional catheterisation, the modified catheterisation group had smaller residual urine volume (median 11 mL Vs. 30.5 mL, p<0.001) and more leakage-free days (30 days Vs. 10 days, p<0.001). Leakage-free survival was longer in the modified catheterisation group (p<0.001). The residual urine volume (>17 vs ≤17 ml (median); incident rate ratio (IRR), 28.710; 95%CI, 4.114-200.331; p=0.001) was independently associated with urine leakage.
Conclusions: The modified catheterisation technique may reduce the incidence of urine leakage.
Keywords: neurogenic; urinary bladder; urinary catheterisation; urinary catheters; urinary incontinence.
© 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.