Foley Catheter Management: A Review

Abstract

Importance: About 100 million urinary catheters are used globally each year. Urinary catheters are effective to establish bladder drainage, but they are associated with risks, including infection and encrustation. To mitigate the associated risks, an understanding of urinary catheter indications, placement and removal techniques, and maintenance is necessary.

Observations: This review describes catheter management and complications. Specifically, catheter indications and alternatives, catheter types, insertion and removal techniques, and catheter maintenance are reviewed. Catheter-associated complications and strategies to minimize risk are described.

Conclusions and relevance: Using best practices related to catheter management optimizes bladder drainage while minimizing the associated risks, including catheter-associated urinary tract infection, catheter encrustations, bladder spasms, and catheter-associated pain.