Patients win with new medical advances

If you are an older man using a urinary catheter daily, you’re not alone. Millions of men across the country rely on catheters to help drain their bladders. In fact, catheter use is so common that home delivery of catheter supplies is marketed on TV the same way you might order a pair of prescription contact lenses.

But unlike contact lenses, catheters (particularly the indwelling variety) come with health risks and significant sacrifices to quality of life. And it’s clear that being unable to stay active or avoid an infection might be the difference maker in a patient’s path to overall health.

Take, for example, one of my patients named Robert. Robert is an 89-year-old man from Casselberry who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (a type of cancer) about two years ago. Robert had a lengthy stay in the hospital for his condition, during which time doctors inserted an indwelling urinary catheter to help drain his bladder. After returning home, Robert had to continue using the catheter to avoid urinary retention and make sure he emptied his bladder effectively.

Robert and his family were focused on treating his cancer, but soon realized that his urinary catheter often complicated things.

Robert lost much of the personal independence he once enjoyed, instead relying on his wife and son to manage his catheter every few hours. Then there was the embarrassment about wearing a drainage bag. The catheter led him to avoid social situations, and discomfort limited his physical activity. He simply wasn’t living the life he used to enjoy, and it was clearly taking a toll on him.

And if all of his quality-of-life sacrifices weren’t difficult enough, three catheter-related urinary tract infections (UTIs) soon tipped the scales. Robert, like many men prescribed a urinary catheter, was learning first-hand about the troubling link between catheters and UTIs, which, according to studies, comprise roughly 40 percent of all hospital acquired infections.

Robert was referred to me, and we were able to get the catheter out. In his case, he was not a good candidate for a surgical procedure, so we replaced his catheter with a temporary prostate stent. The stent is an easily removable silicone device placed in the prostatic urethra that creates a wider opening for urine flow without affecting the prostate tissue. The stent can be placed in the office in just a few minutes without the need for anesthesia. Best of all, it allowed Robert to do away with the external components, reduce his UTI risk and regain mobility.

By sharing Robert’s story, I hope to encourage more men to have open conversations about their experience using catheters. More options exist today than ever before, and it could be the gateway to regaining a more active, healthy lifestyle.

While it is not always feasible for a patient to stop using a catheter, a surprising number of men can successfully end urinary catheter use. I see it first-hand in my practice.