Hey all,
My urologist now has my cathing 4 times a day to address retention and to hopefully stop or curb incontinence (which it hasnt yet, i still need diapers).
This one is directed at Brian especially since he mentioned using hydrophilic catheters in the past, or at least showed familiarity with them. I was fortunate (or so i thought) to get hydrophilic prelubricataed catheters paid for by my insurance. I have tried cathing with these twice and the comfort going in and coming out leaves MUCH to be desired. it feels like theres no lube on the catheter at all. Im following hte instructions as i best understand them.. fill the package with sterile water (distilled water with a sterilized(by boiling water)eyedropper) wait 20 seconds and then use.. and i have more discomfort with these than i do with my regular catheters that aren't hydrophilic or prelubed. I think that unless i figure this out, i might switch back to regular catheters and try to get the lube gel covered by insurance. Any and all insight, experience and advice would be more than appreciated.
Thanks!
Rob
Good Morning Rob and everyone else!
Yes, i have experience with cathing. I've been cathing for about 10 years now (still wear diapers, cathing is more to make sure my bladder is completely emptied several times a day).
The effectiveness of the hydrophilic coating varies widely by brand and type. The PVC caths, in my experience, tend to work best with hydrophilic coatings for some reason. The silicone caths, while most of the time work well, they can be a total bear to remove if the coating comes off in the urethra because silicone is not a slick surface on a catheter like PVC would be. If the coating comes off in the urethra on a PVC cath, removal is usually very easy and pain free still. Do I dislike silicone caths? No, but I have had more instances of difficult/painful insertion and removal with the silicone hydrophilic caths than I ever have on the PVC hydrophilic caths.
I would strongly encourage you to contact a number of caths suppliers who offer discounted or free samples and try a number of different hydrophilic cath brands. In my experience, the PECO brand suck! I have had more PECO caths that have no coating on them or coating that comes off in the urethra and are difficult to insert and remove..not to mention painful.
The current hydrophilic cath that I use is the Cure Hydrophilic catheter 16 FR straight tip. It comes it with its' own sterile water pouch that you break open in the cath pack to lubricate it. THIS is the way I recommend everyone do it, as the cath also has a gripper on it, so your hands never need to touch the cath. I have been using them for 3 years now with NO UTI....NONE! They have a more rounded end, the drainage eyes are fire polished so they're totally smooth and don't scratch the urethra, and the cath is clear. In my experience to this point, insertion and removal are totally painless!
The next best, in my opinion and it's more related to price, is the LoFric Hydro Kit. Again, has its' own sterile water packet and is SUPER slick. They're my second favorite because they're a little more stiff. They work very well, but are not as flexible as the Cure brand. The drainage eyes on the Lofric are a bit more "rough" too. They won't cut you, but you can feel them more than the Cure Hydrophilic.
I hope this helps! I don't know why hydrophilics with their own sterile water packet are not the clinical standard and the "go to" for urologists nowadays, but they sure should be!
Note that I am not affiliated with any of the brands above AT all, other than I have used them. If you are a manufacturer of any of the brands mentioned above and you don't like what I've said about your product, then it's probably time to improve your product.
Brian
