Kidney Issues and Catheter Use
Two primary treatments for painful bladder syndrome currently include bladder instillations and oral medications. A bladder instillation is when a catheter is used to administer the medication directly into the patient’s bladder. If kidney diseases gets serious enough, such as a person having less than 10-15% of their kidney function, a kidney transplant or dialysis is needed.
It’s not uncommon for men who are older than 60 to have some degree of benign prostatic hyperplasia; however, not each person will experience problems with the condition. Someone who does have kidney issues and has a leg bag, it needs to be emptied when it’s half full or at least two times every day. When you are ready to for bed, it’s necessary to change the leg bag and switch it to the drainage bag. Next, ensure you rinse the leg bag with one part vinegar to three parts water. Make sure you soak the bag for at least 20 minutes and then rinse it with warm water and hang to dry. For over 3,500 years, urinary catheters have been used for the purpose of draining the bladder when it feels empty.
With such an increasing rate of people having kidney issues, in 2008 the world market for urinary continence care devices, including pads and catheters, was at an estimated $1.8 billion in revenue each year. Urinary tract infections that are associated with catheters are one of the most common types of healthcare-associated infections, which make up over 30% of healthcare-associated infections that are reported by several acute care hospitals. Approximately 15-24% of people who become hospitalized for this issue will require placement of a foley catheter, which is an indwelling catheter that allows the urine to pass through the bladder after surgery or when a patient needs to stay in the hospital.
When patients are at home and need catheters, having an easy one-handed drainage option is ideal. All types of urinary catheters and the easy one-handed drainage devices can be found at a urological supply store and is easier for older patients, which could reduce infections and hospital stays related to the infection.
