Suprapubic ??????????????????

[auntlulu03]

Is there anybody here with MS who has a suprapubic catheter? How do you manage it?






(From her niece-a quote) "Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day." ~Quoted in P.S. I Love You, compiled by H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

[kebsa]

i have a supr pubic catheter. i had a standard foley catheter for about ayr and found that was ok for me too but as i have limited sensation my urologist felt long term i may have ended with urethral erosion so recommended the SP. the 1st one was put in in a day surgery procedure and then changed by the urologist about 8 weeks later. since then i have mine changed by a continence nurse at home every 6 weeks ( some people change there own).

i have never regretted having a catheter (either type) after struggling with pads for ages first- my bladder would only empty once there was over 1200mls and then that would flood before i could get to the toilet and no pad is able to deal with that. I do get bladder spasm that i only got since i had the sp but i am very over weight so the catheter is insertted quite low in an area i am told has more nerves and they think that is the reason and it is managed with medications. in fact it has been useful as i also have poor bowel control and the spasms can mean that i am a bit constipated or just that the catheter is kinked off - basically that something needs to be checked.

the standard cath would sometimes block but the sp never has as they can use a larger one. it is important to remember thought that if the cath comes out the tract starts to close immediately so you must either replace it yourself if you do your own or to someone who can do it for you within an hour

do you have specif concerns, if so i will try to answer

[rdmc]

Hi,

I don't have a suprapubic catheter, but since no one seemed to be responding, I searched for older threads where it had been discussed. Here's a link to one that's quite lengthy:

http://www.msworld.org/forum/showthr...ght=suprapubic

Hope you can get some info from it.

[laurakim]

I've had an sp catheter since October. Best thing I ever did. I had too many infections with the Foley and found it uncomfortable.

The procedure took less than 30 mins, under local anesthetic. Urologist changed the first one, home care does it now, every 6 wks. Empty the bag several times a day. If you have good use of your hands, you could do that yourself. No discomfort from the tube and no infections Minor occasional spasms. Hardest part, an easy price to pay, is drinking 3 liters of water a day.

[kebsa]

i agree that it was the best decision, the spasm i mentioned are no big deal and actually serve a purpose as i already mentioned, both laurakim have our caths changed by home care but i do know of many who change there own, that depends more on things like how much hand control etc you have and others simply prefer that a home nurse does the deed. I really have not had any infections since the sp while i did have the odd ones with a standard catheter.
i also know of some who have the sp but do not have it connected to a bag all day, they use a flip flow valve on the end of the catheter and simple drain the bladder by flipping the valve to open every few hours or if they feell the need. if you can contact a continence nurse he or she whould be able to answer all your questions and how things are likely to apply to your situation

[sreeder69]

Help

Since we're talking catheters, ihad my suprapubic put in a few weeks ago. Love it but it took a while for pain of surgery to subside, about 2 weeks, theni have trouble getting back to "normal" after. Now I just worry aboutgetting enough muscle activity since I'm not strugglig to use the toilet 10 times a day anymore.
Anyone have skin irritation in the private areas? My skin hurts and is itchy i think because I'm sitting so much. How can I alleviate that?

[laurakim]

Sreeder

Hi Sreeder,
The only time my skin in the nether region has been itchy was before the sp cath when a rash was starting due to not being able to clean and dry the area well. My caregiver now looks after this. And, between her helping me turn frequently, and my tilt chair, I get the weight off my bottom throughout the day. Skin issues and pressure sores are best avoided. Good luck!

[kebsa]

sreeder, i have not had the skin problems but at first i did note that i was having more problems with standing to transfer and realized that it was probably because i was simply not having to do it so often ( the old use it or lose it idea) so i have simply made sure that i make a point of standing up several times a day as if i were going to transfer. Its actually better because before i was rushed as i was trying to get over the toilet before flooding yet another pair of pants! and it is those rushed transfers that put us at risk of falling. Now my practice stands are more controlled, safer and therefore probably more effective and keeping things moving. it is a good point though that we need to watch that in dealing with one issue that we do not make another worse