nursing care for female catheterization

female catheterization and male catheterization

what is urethral catheterization?

Urethral Catheterization is a routine medical procedure to allow the urine to drain from the bladder. Urinary catheterization can be used either for diagnosis or for therapeutic purposes. In urinary catheterization, a silicone or rubber urinary catheter is carefully inserted into a male or female’s bladder through the urethra. A female urethra is shorter than a male’s urethra. Urinary catheterization can be either temporary like during surgery or be long term in dwelling catheter to help patients with varied health conditions.

what is male catheterization?

Catheterization is a gender neutral procedure, however, owing to anatomical differences between a male and female body, the steps and the urinary catheter differ. Male catheterisation involves inserting the catheter tube into the urinary tract through the penis. There is also a condom type catheter called Texas catheter that easily fits around the tips of the penis and can be self administered.

what is female catheterisation?

The basic principle of inserting a catheter tube inside the urinary tract is same as male catheterisation; just that female catheterisation is a little complex than male catheterisation, owing to the varying layouts of the female genitalia due to age, obesity, child birth and other factors.

why do you need catheterisation?

Urinary catheterization is used for various reasons ranging from diagnosis to surgery and treatment from some health conditions. A doctor might prescribe catheterisation in the following case;

• Urinary Incontinence
• Urinary Retention
• Surgery on the prostate or genitals
• Multiple sclerosis
• Spinal cord injury
• Dementia

types of urinary catheters

There are several different types of catheters used namely;

• Foley catheter
• Intermittent or Robinson catheter
• Haematuria catheter
• Condom or Texas catheter
• Coude catheter

female catheterisation types

There are several different types of female catheter besides the same foley catheter used for male catheterisation namely, Female catheter, and Malecot Catheter

male catheterisation types

Men however, do have a special catheter specifically designed for them called the Texas catheter. It is a special type of male catheter that easily around the tips of the penis and can also be administered by self.

Catheter Sizes

A male catheter’s size is determined in Charriere (ch) and one Ch equals to 1/3 mm, thereby 12 Ch means 4mm. A female’s catheter size is determined in terms of French sizes and 1 French = 1 Charriere = 0.33mm.

Male catheterisation sizes

Male catheterization sizes ranges between 12Ch and 16 Ch. The smallest size of catheter should be chosen for proper drainage as larger sized catheter can not only cause irritation but also result in urine bypassing around the catheter.
Female catheterization sizes ranges between 12 F and 14 F. In female catheterization too it is recommended to select the smaller size of the catheter for adequate urine drainage. Large catheters of sizes 16F to 20 F are used in cases, where the patient has urine with debris, mucous, blood clots or haematuria. A 22F triple lumen catheter is used in the case of bladder irrigation and washout.

how can we help?

Catheterisation can be done by self but getting it done from people with medical expertise is always better to avoid any injury and discomfort. With the availability of at home healthcare services like Portea, you can easily have urinary catheterisation done at the comfort of your home. So if you need male catheterisation at home or female catheterisation at home just give us a call and our representative nurse would be at your doorstep in a short time. They will not only safely execute catheterisation but, would also provide the necessary education for its maintenance. So just gives us a call and let our professional nurse take care of your catheterisation needs.